Chained to You - Book Two: Pieces of the Puzzle
by Haley J. The Bat
Summary: An assassination attempt on Palpatine's life brings Sabé and Obi-Wan back together. As they search for a lead, the pieces begin to fall together, spelling out a conspiracy that's impossible to believe.
1. Chapter One

More Detailed Summery: An assassination attempt on Palptine's life brings Sabé and Obi-Wan back together. As they search for a lead, the pieces begin to fall together, spelling out a bigger conspiracy that's impossible to believe. Can they unwrap the mystery and find out if it's a friend or foe who's behind everything?  
  
Author's Notes: This is a sequel to my Chained to You - Book One: Meeting Your Destiny. This fic is colored with characters of my own creation, and a plot that I developed all by myself. You may find this one more interesting since you don't already know what's going to happen as you did in the prequel to this. Almost every character mentioned in here I created myself, so don't get any ideas about taking them. (I rather like Clem and Roth.)  
  
I'm worried that this beginning may bore you, since you really don't know who Clemens Lorcan is, but that's explained as we go throughout the story. He's a major part of the plot, so I wouldn't delete it for the world. Just keep on going -- Obi-Wan gets to visit in the next chapter.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Senator Clemens Lorcan was practically biting his fingernails in apprehension when the doors he was sitting next to slid open suddenly. A tall, hulking figure stepped into the waiting room and nodded at the secretary.  
  
"The Chancellor will see you now," the woman behind the desk said to Clem absently as she studied a holo in front of her, waving her hand to let him know he could pass through.  
  
Clem felt his gut tighten in nerves as he stood up slowly. Though Clem was indeed not a small person, the figure that was waiting at the door was so huge that Clem was nearly shaking, so intimidated was he. But Clem was a Senator, and he had been trained since a child for a life in politics. He didn't let anything show on his face as he followed what he deciphered to be a man through the set of doors and into another.  
  
The man punched a code in, his fingers moving so fast that Clem couldn't manage to see even one of the digits, and the doors slid open before them. Inside the huge room was a single desk, its back to a wall made of glass where speeders could be seen flying in traffic. The room was luxurious, no doubt, and there were several chairs placed sporadically around the room. Three were directly in front of the desk.  
  
"Ah, Senator Lorcan, I presume," a dashing figure said, his voice warm and friendly. Clem recognized Chancellor Palpatine as the older man turned around to face him. Palpatine moved to his desk and stood behind it, motioning for Clem to sit in one of the three chairs across from him. Clem moved to the one in the middle, and he took the hand that Chancellor Palpatine offered, clasping it firmly in his own before sitting down in the comfortable seat.  
  
"I have been notified that you are here with a problem in the Lark system," Palpatine said as he sat down, looking down at a data reader and skimming it quickly. He looked back up at Clem with a smile. "I've had the pleasure of visiting there before. It's a very beautiful planet."  
  
"Indeed it is," Clem agreed. He cleared his throat in nervousness. He hadn't expected the Chancellor to be so open and friendly -- not that he was complaining! "Although not much can be said for it anymore."  
  
"Oh?" Palpatine said, sounding attentive as he leaned forward, indicating for Clem to speak.  
  
"Yes," Clem continued, feeling more at ease with each passing second. "As far as eight months back, our hospitals began to fill up with strange symptoms; inability to breathe and boils on the skin being the most common. Since then, the reports have skyrocketed. Around half of our population has died from whatever this disease is. We thought we could handle it on our own, and we invested in the help of our most prestigious scientests. After testing the air, it was concluded that something had been put into it. Irregular chemicals were showing up on the charts. We also studied the planet, looking for a volcano that had erupted or some other natural phenomen. When we found nothing, only one possibility remained. Our scientest are quite positive that . . . a biological war weapon was unleashed on the planet."  
  
Palpatine sat for a second in what looked like numb shock, listening carefully to every word Clem spoke. There was a long silence after the Senator's little speech, and Palpatine finally cleared his throat and blinked, the picture of calm once more. "Did you bring the data from your scientists and pictures of the destruction?"  
  
"Of course, Chancellor," Clem said immediately. "I have prepared everything so that when we present this case to the Senate, it will take them less time than months to find a solution for our problem."  
  
"That is all very good," Palpatine said, his voice straining with something Clem couldn't figure out. The Chancellor smiled, and all trace of whatever it was that had shown up on his face was gone. "Do you have the information with you now? It would help me rest easier to see this ahead of time. I'm sure if I rally on your side, Lark will be as good as new in no time."  
  
Clem was about to stutter his thanks, but he thought better of it. He didn't want to appear uneducated. Instead, he settled for fumbling for the bag on his shoulder. He unzipped it and pulled out three data cards, handing them to the Chancellor. "They're all labeled according to the information they hold. That one has holos of our people and the side effects of what is happening. That one has the information that our scientists have gathered. And the last one has information on all natural disasters in the past five years. As you can see, we did a very thorough job."  
  
"Yes, I can," Palpatine said. He put one of the cards into a holoviewer on his desk. Clem nearly shuddered at the sight that appeared in the middle of the desk. A man that was in his last days of life, covered in boils and heaving for breath. Palpatine pulled the card out again, his jaw clenched. "I will go over these later, Lorcan, and will have someone present them to you just before the meeting. I assure you, Lark *will* find justice."  
  
Clem felt as if the Chancellor had lifted a few tons of weight off his shoulders. He sighed in obvious relief and shook Palpatine's hand once more, standing from his seat. "Thank you so much, Chancellor Palpatine, you truly are the best leader we've had in a long time."  
  
Before Clem could blunder anymore, his arm was taken by the man who had led him into the office. Instead of feeling intimidated this time, Clem let himself be escorted out of the office in an air of relief and joy. Clem loved his planet and his people with all of his heart, and that heart was ripped to pieces with each life that was killed with the biological weapon. He hadn't thought there was any hope. Years of watching the Senate argue amoungst itself over petty indifferences had taken away all respect he had for it. Yet, talking with Chancellor Palpatine had reassured every bone in Clem's body. Lark's people would be saved; Chancellor Palpatine had promised that much. And, inexplicably, something about the Senate's leader made Clem trust that his promises would be fulfilled.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"The Senate is about to start in three minutes," Gemina Yrrk hissed into Clem's ear as they stood impatiently in the hallway outside of their box. "You're *positive* that Chancellor Palpatine told you he'd give them back, right?"  
  
"He was very friendly," Clem replied evenly. "I trust him."  
  
"If you trust him, then why hasn't he returned the data cards? If we want any chance of being noticed, we have to have those!" Gem continued, her voice rising with each word.  
  
"Calm down, Gem. Everything's going to work out fine," Clem said in what he hoped was a comforting manner. Secretly, inside he was also a bundle of nerves, senses on red alert as he waited for Palpatine to return the disks.  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
"Chancellor Palpatine promised me that he would be sure Lark received justice," Clem said by way of an answer. He put a hand over Gem's. "It has to work, Gem, and I believe that it will."  
  
Gem took a deep breath and managed to give Clem a smile. "Okay. Okay. We can do this. I'm sure he's just running a little late."  
  
"I'm sure he is," Clem said reassuringly. He wasn't really paying attention to Gem anymore though, not since she'd stopped screeching. He was looking down both sides of the hallway, impatient for the data cards to be in his hands again.  
  
"One minute," Gem said, sighing. "One minute. We're not going to be able to do this, Clem!"  
  
"Yes, we are. Hold on a minute," Clem said. He narrowed his eyes in the direction he had seen a dark figure coming forward. Another few steps and he was sure. Nobody else he'd ever met could be as tall as the hulking creature he'd met in Chancellor Palpatine's office. "I think that's one of Palpatine's staff."  
  
"Really?" Gem demanded, her voice hitting a high note once more. She put a hand over her mouth at Clem's glare, indicating that she'd stay quiet.  
  
"Clemens Lorcon," the man said, stopping in front of him. "Zoilo Pollock."  
  
"Hello, Mr. Pol--"  
  
"People call me Zoilo," the man interrupted menacingly.  
  
"Yes, yes, of course," Clem stuttered. "My terrible mistake. Did you come to bring us the data disks?" Zoilo held out a bag, and Clem took it eagerly. "Looks like they're all here. Did the Chancellor comment on what he saw?"  
  
"The Chancellor is very angry," Zoilo said simply. He shrugged and turned around, walking away before Clem could gather the courage to ask why.  
  
"Get in the box!" Gem whispered, grabbing Clem's arm and pulling him into Lark's Senate box.  
  
"What was the Chancellor angry about?" Clem asked. He felt something cold settle in his stomach, but he wasn't sure why.  
  
"Probably that Lark is under so much destruction," Gem said impatiently. She smoothed down the thick folds of her dress. "Do I look ready to stand before the Senate?"  
  
"Don't you always?" Clem replied. He set the disks down only to find that his hands were trembling. "What if the Senate doesn't agree to help? Or what if they don't decide to help until all of Lark is lost?"  
  
Gem stopped smoothing her gown, and a look of genuine concern crossed her face. She held out her hands and took Clem's shaking ones in her own. "Clemens, everything will turn out all right. You can't think about what *might* happen. You have to concentrate on making what you want to happen, happen. Did that make sense?"  
  
"Yes," Clem said. He pulled away from her but offered her a smile. "Thank you, Gem. I'm glad you're here for support."  
  
Gem smiled back. "Anytime, Clem. Anytime."  
  
"It's about to start," Clem said, pointing to where Chancellor Palpatine had stood up and spread out his arms in greeting. "Turn on the holoviewer."  
  
Gem switched it on and turned back to Clem. She fussed with his microphone, attached to his neck so that everyone could hear what he said when he stood before the court. She reached up and kissed Clem on the cheek. "Save Lark for us, Clem," she whispered shortly in his ear.  
  
"I'll do my best," Clem said, a smile on his face. He looked ready to speak again, but their attention swerved back to the post where Palpatine was standing.  
  
"The chair recognizes Senator Clemens Lorcan of the Lark planatary system," Palpatine said. On cue, Gem began to direct their box to the middle of the room.  
  
"Thank you, Chancellor Palpatine," Clem began. He ignored the clammy feeling in his hands as he bowed. "I come before the Senate with a case of supreme importance. Lark and its people are quiet and peaceful. We like to keep to ourselves, so I would not come before you today unless it was an emergency.  
  
"Eight months ago, people began filling up our hospitals with symptoms such as difficulty breathing and wicked-looking boils. In those eight months, the number of people sick and dead have skyrocketed. Half of our population has died out.  
  
"The ruling Royal Family of Lark as well as myself were at a loss in what to do. We finally decided to hire the most well-known scientist in our sector; we knew not where to start, and we needed help. Unnatural chemicals were found in the air; chemicals that had never been in Lark's system before. The scientist concluded that it must be a biological weapon released on the planet. Since Lark is such a peaceful planet, we rejected the idea and had the surface studied for sign of any natural disaster that could have caused this. We found no such thing, and we finally had to accept that someone purposefully released a biological weapon onto Lark. I do not come before you with accusations, I come before you with a plea for help. Please, take pity on our small planet."  
  
Gem shot Clem the thumbs up sign, and he blushed slightly. Gem was able to make him do that a lot more often lately. He sighed deeply, feeling relief flood his veins. That had gone over well. Nobody was boo-ing him out of the limelight, so he decided that he must have been professional about relating to the Senate Lark's case.  
  
"The chair recognizes that you have footage of such atrocities and data collected by your scientists," Palpatine said. When Clem met the Chancellor's eyes, a shiver went up his back. Palpatine's eyes were cold and unfeeling, so different from what he had seen the day before.  
  
"Y-Yes," Clem stuttered after a moment. The Chancellor's cold gaze had thrown him off. He emptied the bag out and placed one of the data cards into the network computer system. "These are the results of the scientists' studies, as you can see."  
  
There was murmering and quiet laughter from around the room. Gem gasped beside him. Clem looked down at his computer and felt his jaw drop in shock.  
  
"Is this some kind of joke, Senator Lorcan?" Palpatine demanded, gesturing to the holo that had come up in the middle of the room for all to see. "These are results from a podrace on the Outer Rim world Tatooine."  
  
"S-Sir . . ." Clem couldn't think straight. He ejected the data card immediately and placed another one in, wanting to get back on track. "These should be . . ." he trailed off, staring in open shock at the screen before him. This time Gem ejected the data card. That had been a holo of two people in bed together, their gasps droning out the laughter and shocked gasps for a split second.  
  
"What is the meaning of this?" Palpatine demanded.  
  
Gem took the microphone from Clem, a cool look in her eyes. "I can tell you exactly what the meaning of this is, Chancellor. Someone switched the tapes. Probably the same person who set off the--"  
  
Clem yanked it away from her. Something told him to keep her quiet. "Gem, don't do this. Not now."  
  
"He obviously switched the cards!" Gem shrieked, her voice rising as it always did when she was angry or upset.  
  
"The chair wishes for Senator Lorcan of the Lark system to leave the floor. Until they have real information to present us, we should try and get something *done* here."  
  
The box began to move without Gem touching the controls. Clem collapsed backwards onto the bench on the side of the box. He buried his face in his hands. He felt numb with shock.  
  
"Why would he do that?" Gem murmered beside him. She shook her head furiously. "Clem, do you think he set off the disease?"  
  
"What motive does he have?" Clem asked hoarsely.  
  
"I don't know," Gem whispered. She felt just as helpless as Clem did.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The day went from bad to worse. Clem had to sit through hours in the Senate. Never before had he minded; he had always enjoyed politics. But as each minute passed, as Clem studied Palpatine's face, he wondered why it had never struck him before. Chancellor Palpatine was a cold, unfeeling man with no soul. Clem wasn't sure if he discovered this because he was more perceptive than most people or because he was angrier at this one man than he had ever felt in his life.  
  
Gem had taken him out drinking. They went to the lowest level of Coruscant, looking for the seediest bar they could find, wanting a way of escape. They had failed the people of Lark. Clem couldn't help feeling that it was all his fault. He had trusted Palpatine. He hadn't made two copies of the data. He had been unprepared. There were so many things he had done wrong. Even if he went back to the planet to collect the data again, it might take months before the Senate let him present his case again. With the rapidly increasing deaths, he wondered if there would be anything left of Lark by that time.  
  
Gem and Clem eventually decided that drinking was just depressing them more so than before. They stumbled back to their apartments and parted ways. Clem fumbled with the door to his rooms, trying to get it open. When he finally thought he had done so much, he found that there was a lone figure in the room.  
  
Clem stared stupidly for a minute. "I must have the wrong apartment," he muttered to himself. He remembered that he was drunk. "Or I'm seeing things . . ."  
  
"Clemens Lorcan, I presume," the man said. He stood up, and there was an air of supreme importance around him. HIs features were contorted in what looked to be anger and rage. Clem didn't think the emotions were directed at him though. He had a strange feeling that the man's face always looked like that. Clem wondered what had happened to make the man be such a way.  
  
"Yes," Clem answered timidly, clutching at the door for support.  
  
"We saw what happened to you at the Senate today. We saw what Chancellor Palpatine did to you," the man said. "And we want you to know that you're not the first. But maybe you can be the last. We will bring Chancellor Palpatine down."  
  
Clem felt his stomach do some weird flips. He had no doubt that this man was speaking the truth. "What exactly are you trying to say?" he asked, his voice cracking.  
  
"We want you to join a Federation we have built."  
  
"Who's 'we'?" Clem asked.  
  
The figure was joined by two more, reptillian-looking creatures. Clem felt something stir in the back of his mind. "Hey, aren't you--"  
  
"Yes," one of them said. "Now, Lorcan, let's discuss this Federation of ours and how you fit in with it."  
  
"Me?" Clem gulped.  
  
"Yes," the original man said. He smiled calmly. "We are presenting you with the opportunity to get revenge upon the man that just screwed over your home, your planet."  
  
"That's one way of putting it," Clem admitted.  
  
"That's the only way to put it," the man corrected. "Now shut that door and sit down. We need to talk."  
  
* * * * *  
  
Nearly a month later, Chancellor Palpatine could be found in the Senate's vast banquet hall, dancing the night away with many a woman. His conscience wasn't clouded with what he did to the Lark system. In fact, he hadn't given a second thought to Senator Lorcan since he'd gotten the pesky man out of his hair.  
  
Sabé Yéré, one of Chancellor Palpatine's most trusted security employees, waited on the sidelines along with Phira Quintessa, one of Palpatine's favorite bedmates. She watched the Chancellor with an intent eye, not even daring to blink. She had been working for him for only a few months, and in that time she hadn't had to use her training once. Everybody seemed to love Palpatine, and never had he been put in any danger. Yet she wasn't going to let the lack of violence keep her from doing her duty and slacking off.  
  
Phira was fidgiting next to Sabé, and the younger girl had to feel some pity. Phira was one of Sabé's closest friends since Padmé never visited Coruscant. The woman was in her late thirties, but unless you knew her well you wouldn't be able to guess. She was one of the lucky women blessed with good looks all their life. It wasn't a mystery why Palpatine chose her as a "companion".  
  
Phira's only problem was that she was a little naive. Sometimes she reminded Sabé of a child, and most of the staff that worked around her kept a watching eye out for Phira. She was very obviously in love with Chancellor Palpatine. The Chancellor didn't return her feelings, and was making it very obvious at that banquet. He had danced with every single woman there. Except for Phira.  
  
"Sabé?" Phira asked softly, tugging on the security officer's arm.  
  
Sabé turned her head slightly, trying to keep an eye on Palpatine while still paying attention to Phira. "Hmmm?"  
  
"Does my dress look all right?" Phira asked, tugging at the edges of the skirt. Sabé turned to look Phira over, an intent look on her face. She figured that Phira deserved an honest answer. The dress was beautiful. Of course, Sabé was certain that Phira Quintessa would look gorgeous in a brown paper sack. One of the most charming things about Phira was that she didn't seem to realize how beautiful she was.  
  
"It's absolutely perfect," Sabé said sincerely. She smiled reassuringly at Phira. "You know that dark green is your best color."  
  
Phira smiled back, and her face seemed to light up with intensity of it. "Thank you, Sabé," she said shly.  
  
Sabé noticed that Phira stopped fidgiting, seemingly calmed down for the moment, so she turned around to try and find Palpatine in the crowds. He was on the dance floor again, a blonde woman who couldn't be older than seventeen in his arms. Sabé felt like slapping him. He was a nice, decent man, she knew, but the way he was treating Phira was intolerable.  
  
"He hasn't asked me to dance yet, Sabé," Phira said, breaking Sabé's thoughts with her frantic voice. "He's going to replace me with someone younger and more beautiful than me, isn't he?"  
  
"Of course not," Sabé said, but she wasn't so sure of this. She decided the best way to go about it was to change the subject. "Don't worry, the night is still young. Besides, dinner should start at the end of this song. You're going to be sitting next to him at dinner."  
  
Phira's happiness with that statement would have been obvious to anyone who wasn't Force-sensitive. Sabé didn't even have to glance at the woman to know there was one of those purely happy smiles on her small features. Her mood was so intoxicating that Sabé began to feel the beginnings of a smile on her own face.  
  
"He is a man," Phira said softly, defending the Chancellor weakly. "He needs his distractions."  
  
Sabé heartily disagreed with this, so she didn't comment at all. As she predicted, the song began to slow in pace, and instead of a faster one starting up, the music ended altogether. Palpatine let his dance partner drift off to the sidelines, and he headed straight for the long table at the front of the hall where the most important people sat. Sabé took Phira's hand in her own and pulled her up to that point. Phira came along willingly, and Sabé pushed her in the direction of her pre-assigned seat. Once Phira was well off, Sabé retreated backwards into the shadows of the room where she could watch over Palpatine unnoticed.  
  
Once the guests were all seated, the various doors around the room opened, and waiters and waitresses poured out. Since it was a Senate meeting that the Supreme Chancellor himself would be attending, they had opted for real live people instead of droids. Just as the people were pouring in, Sabé felt something dark curl in the Force around her. Somebody in the audience had malicious intent, that much she could tell.  
  
Her danger sense was flaring up so that she couldn't ignore it. She scanned the room quickly, but she couldn't identify who it was that was setting her off. Then her danger sense became louder and more demanding. Acting on instinct, Sabé leaped forward and knocked the Chancellor onto the floor with a shout. He was pinned to the ground beneath her, a shocked expression on his face. Blaster shots were heard just as they were falling to the ground, and when Sabé looked up the wall behind where Palpatine had been sitting, three neat holes were sizzling through it. One right where Palpatine's head would have been, and two on either side of his chest. Whoever it was who had shot the blaster had an incredible aim.  
  
The room filled with screaming of woman, and everyone dropped to the floor. Trays that the waiters had been holding dropped to the ground in a clatter. Sabé let her sense go out as far as she could. Whoever it was had moved into the hallway. She closed her eyes and plunged deep into the Force, looking for enlightenment on the situation. Her eyes snapped open. He was making an escape! Sabé jumped to her feet, then onto the table. Everyone around her screamed at the sudden movement. She ignored them though and jumped down from the table, running for the door. She used the Force to help give her speed and to keep her from running into tables, chairs, and bodies.  
  
When she got out into the hallway, she stopped again, breathing heavily, and let her Force-senses scan the area for that distinct presence she had felt. This time she felt nothing. The man had escaped right through the front door. Apparently the security had been too slow to figure out that after blaster shots had been fired, they shouldn't let someone go running out of the building.  
  
Sabé whirled around when she felt someone touch her shoulder. Zoilo was standing there. He was supposed to have been standing guard at the door leading into the hallway. By the looks of all that lipstick around his mouth he had gotten a little . . . "distracted".  
  
"You'd better wipe that off your face before the Chancellor sees," Sabé warned in a low voice. He brought a hand up to his chin, and she stepped past him to return to the banquet hall. Someone had to break the news to Palpatine that the culprit hadn't been caught.  
  
Just as she was walking, a siren sounded, and a bunch of guards burst from a door further down the hallway came running out. Sabé laughed sardonically. No wonder they hadn't been out there in time. The whole lot of them looked lazy, fat, and incredibly stupid.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The next day, Sabé found herself in the dark corner of Palpatine's office, watching as the Chancellor retold the happenings of the night before to the Jedi Council. Like the good Jedi that they were, no expressions passed their faces as they heard each word. When Palpatine was done, there was a long silence where the Jedi considered the tale curiously and the Chancellor waited patiently for their answer.  
  
"From us, what desire you?" Yoda asked finally. He leaned forward on the chair he sat, resting his small head on an even smaller hand. His eyes narrowed as they watched Palpatine, almost as if he was trying to see right through the man.  
  
Palpatine looked contemplative for a moment, as if trying to find a way to state his request. "What do I want? Obviously, I would like to know who is behind this."  
  
"The Jedi are peacekeepers, Chancellor, not detectives," Mace Windu reminded Palpatine pointedly.  
  
"But you've been known to try and figure out a case or two, have you not?" Palpatine countered.  
  
"I suppose," Windu admitted reluctantly. "You must understand though, we don't always have extra pupils on hand. It might be hard to find someone who has no other assignments to work on."  
  
"I don't care who you give me. All Jedi are intelligent, so just pick someone who can find out who is behind the assassination attempt and whether that person will try it again," Palpatine said, letting a little of his fury out in his voice. His hands balled into fists, and Sabé noticed that a vein on the top of his head was becoming dangerously more prominent.  
  
Windu clenched his jaw, and he looked ready to reply snappily, but Yoda beat him to it. "Find you a Jedi, we will. Here to serve, we are."  
  
Palpatine took a deep breath. "Thank you, Master Yoda. I have another request though."  
  
Yoda's ears moved forward on his head. "Oh?"  
  
"My security are some of the finest people in the galaxy," Palpatine began. "I handpick them myself, and I am satisfied with each and every individual. However, this attempt on my life has made me cautious and wary. I request that you loan me a few more Jedi for added protection."  
  
"This is more like the dealings we are used to, Chancellor," Mace Windu said, his voice calmer than before. "If you want Jedi for protection, we can accept that. How long will you need them?"  
  
"Until the person who is behind this is either dead or in prison," Palpatine answered in an 'isn't it obvious' voice. He didn't give the Jedi a chance to comment before he spoke again, his voice overly casual. "I've seen on recent holonews that young Anakin Skywalker has been chosen as a Padawan by the infamous Obi-Wan Kenobi. Is this correct?"  
  
Sabé sucked in her breath deeply at the sound of that name. She hadn't heard it from anything besides holonews for . . . had it really been three years? She snapped back to the conversation, not wanting to miss anything important because of a funny feeling in her chest, the leftovers of her first love, the brief romance she had encountered as a teenager.  
  
"Yes--" Windu begain reluctantly, but he was interrupted almost immediately.  
  
"I have had the honor to meet Skywalker; he's a very special young child. Obi-Wan Kenobi was under the training of Master Qui-Gon Jinn, was he not?"  
  
"Yes--"  
  
"Good, good." Palpatine rubbed his hands together and leaned forward on the desk. He managed to give his most intimidating look. "I want that Padawan- Master team to be my protection."  
  
"Chancellor Palpatine," Windu said in a warning voice, indicating that Palpatine had gone too far in favors, "to ask for protection is one thing. To ask for a specific Jedi duo is . . . *impossible*."  
  
"They are on planet," Palpatine said defensively. "Kenobi gave his clearance codes just last week, and I haven't had news of him leaving planet again."  
  
"Master Obi-Wan and his apprentice are already reassigned. I'm sorry, Chancellor, but you will have to make do with whom we can get you," Windu said, his tone harsh.  
  
"Surely you can send anyone in Kenobi and Skywalker's place."  
  
"Just as surely as we can give you anyone else for protection," Windu replied. He sat back, shaking his head. "No, Chancellor, that is our answer."  
  
"Why Master Obi-Wan do you request?" Yoda asked, his voice the voice of reason in the tension-filled air that had built between Windu and Palpatine.  
  
Palpatine sighed. "He worked in security for the Queen of my home planet not so many years ago. I also had the chance to meet with him. He is a noble and honest fellow. I want someone who I know personally, someone I can trust. I want someone who can do the job right."  
  
Sabé felt as if time had actually frozen. Obi-Wan? Here? Working with her? She didn't know whether to be terrified or ecstatic.  
  
"Get back to you, we will. Meditate on this, we must," Yoda said with finality in his voice. "Our answer tomorrow you will recieve."  
  
Palpatine sighed, knowing this was the best he could get. He stood up and offered his hand to first Yoda, then Mace Windu. The latter Jedi still had his jaw clenched, and his handshake seemed overly tight. "Thank you for your help," Palpatine murmered politely.  
  
"It's always a pleasure," Mace Windu said in response for all of the Council.  
  
Palpatine nodded at Sabé, and she went for the door. She typed in the activation code, and the door swooshed open. One by one, the Jedi Council evacuated the room. When they were out, she shut the door again and turned to look at Palpatine expectantly.  
  
Palpatine had put his head in his hands on his desk. "Your Excellency," Sabé said softly, taking a step forward in the now empty room, "is there anything you need me to do?"  
  
Palpatine looked up at her. At first he seemed confused, as if he'd been so lost in his own thoughts he didn't even recognize her. Then he smiled reassuringly at her. "Send Zoilo in for protection. Then I want you to use that wonderful brain of yours to get a head start before we get those Jedi. I want to know who attempted assassination on me, and, more importantly, I want to know *why*."  
  
"Yes, Your Excellency," Sabé said. She bowed her head in admission. Just as the doors swished open again, she turned around to look at Palpatine. "What will you do if the Council does not allow you to have Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi?"  
  
Palpatine looked up at her, the hint of a smirk on his face though his eyes were cold and hard. "That won't happen, my dear Sabé."  
  
Sabé turned around as fast as she could, not wanting him to see the joy- filled smile on her face. She was sure of his words. After all, only three years ago, she and Obi-Wan had been sure they'd see each other again. She had been shocked, to say the least, when Palpatine made the specific request for those two. That shock had left her body for a sense of dazed hopefulness. Now she was teetering on the edge of crying out and leaping for joy. She had spent three years dreaming about Obi-Wan. He had tainted her young hear to the point where she hadn't desired another man since. All she wanted was her handsome Jedi Knight. Now they would work in security together, and they might be able to work things out. Sabé knew the Fates had to have something to do with their meeting -- her feelings were too powerful to be explained other wise. So she was convinced that there had to be a way for them to stay together, no matter what. The Fates were disappointing sometimes, Sabé knew, but they couldn't be so evil as to give her Obi-Wan only to take him back again.  
  
Suddenly, Sabé stood stiffly, straightening her spine. What if he didn't want to work things out? Just because she spent all of her time woo-ing over her memories of him and the hope that she might make more later on didn't mean that he had done the same about her. Sabé bit her lip and continued down the corrider. Her stomach was flipping with nerves, and doubts began to fill her mind. She tried her best to vanish them, but none of the Jedi soothing tricks she'd learned would work.  
  
She sighed and blanked her mind, focusing only on the task at hand. It was soon enough too, because she was just stepping out into the waiting room. Zoilo stood waiting by the door. He was a huge man, and he always sent a trickle of fear down Sabé's back. If he wanted to, she was sure that he could crush her small body with the flick of his wrist. She attempted to smile at him, but she wasn't sure if he noticed. "The Chancellor has requested your presence," she informed him in her most mature voice.  
  
Zoilo didn't acknowledge her words or thank her. He just turned around the corner and down the corrider, obviously expected her to shut the doors. She sighed and typed in the security code. Security around Palpatine was tight, and her fingers ached from typing in so many codes day in and day out.  
  
Sabé took a deep breath and headed for the library, her mind still swirling with images of Obi-Wan. How was she supposed to work on finding out the assassinator when Palpatine was insisting on making her former lover work with her? 


	2. Chapter Two

AN: First off, I'd like to say wow to that insane review I got. I doubt that she'll ever read this since she told me as much. I'm sorry then to anyone else reading this who feels the same way. I felt guilty, and so I wrote a chapter of TRPA for you all, and I plan on continuning to do that. Thank you to those who reviewed to let me know they liked the first chapter. Obi-Wan comes into this story, and it's not mostly about a character you know nothing about. (Although I do like Clem, so leave him alone;)  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The next day, leaning against an open doorway leading to one of the many gyms inside of the Jedi Temple, the famous Obi-Wan Kenobi could be found. He was watching casually as his Padawan learner, the also famous Anakin Skywalker, fought in a duel with one of the other Padawans in the temple. It was a girl today, and Obi-Wan was beginning to respect her abilities. Though Anakin had the upper hand, this girl was fighting back with an energy that most lost after two minutes of fighting Anakin.  
  
"A fiesty one, eh?"  
  
Obi-Wan nearly jumped out of his skin at the intruding voice. He turned around to recognize Roth Sagiv, his best friend as a child and through the years. Once he was reassured, he leaned back against the doorway. "The girl or Anakin?"  
  
"The girl," Roth said, nodding to her. "Her name is Beula Guiseppa."  
  
"She's probably fifteen years younger than you too," Obi-Wan reminded Roth bluntly.  
  
Roth chuckled. "That's almost humorous, Obi-Wan." He sobered. "As a matter of fact . . . I finally took on an apprentice."  
  
"Did you now?" Obi-Wan asked, raising his eyebrows. He watched the girl again, nodding in approvement. "It's fitting; you choosing a female as your apprentice."  
  
Roth snorted. "It's not like that, Obi-Wan. It was a calling of the Force," he said, trailing off in the end. Roth Sagiv didn't usually say things like that, and he knew it too.  
  
"She's wonderful in combat," Obi-Wan complimented. "Of course, she's no match for Anakin . . ."  
  
"Nobody is," Roth commented dryly. "She's holding her own though."  
  
"Yes, she is," Obi-Wan said, smiling. He watched Beula duck under Anakin's lightsaber and send him hurtling across the ground. "He deserved that."  
  
"I'm not denying it," Roth muttered.  
  
"He *is* pretty damn arrogant, isn't he?" Obi-Wan said, laughing. "You just try having him as an apprentice. I'm twenty seven years old, and I'm not getting any younger. It's hard to keep up with him."  
  
Roth was about to reply, but suddenly Anakin leaped up in the air so that he was behind Beula. He expertly moved his lightsaber so that it looked as if it was slicing through her middle, shutting it on and off around her body.  
  
"Anakin!" Obi-Wan scolded, marching into the gym. "How many times have I told you not to do that? It isn't safe."  
  
"But, Master," Anakin pleaded. He opened his eyes wide, appearing as innocent as he possibly could. "I didn't hurt her, did I?"  
  
"That's not the point," Obi-Wan said with a sigh.  
  
"Are you really Obi-Wan Kenobi?" Beula asked, her voice laced with awe as she looked up at Obi-Wan. He felt a little bit overwhelmed by the look she was giving him.  
  
"Of course it is," Anakin said, rolling his eyes. Obi-Wan felt for the boy. He remembered being young and having the infamous Qui-Gon Jinn for a Master. The kids had always flanked his Master as an idol. He half-expected them to ask for Qui-Gon's autograph at times. He had never been bothered by the younger generation until the Battle of Naboo. Word got around that Obi- Wan had killed the first Sith in a millenia, and now the kids always followed his movements with wide, open eyes, begging him to acknowledge their presence in some way.  
  
"Haven't I told you tales of Obi-Wan?" Roth asked, looking down at Beula with an expression of amusement. The girl shook her dark head. "Really? I'll have to sit the two of you down sometime and tell you about the many times this old party pooper here let me talk him into sneaking out of the Temple."  
  
"Roth!" Obi-Wan warned, sending a meaningful glance Anakin's way. He didn't need for the boy to know anything about Obi-Wan breaking the rules. It would only serve to encourage him.  
  
"Master Obi-Wan?" Anakin repeated doubtfully.  
  
"Oh, yes," Roth said, nodding. He ignored Obi-Wan's look altogether. "He was a rebellious little sucker, weren't you?"  
  
"Roth, do I need to remind you of a certain meeting?" Obi-Wan said exasperatedly.  
  
"Oh, right," Roth said. He frowned, then placed his arm on Beula's shoulder. "Come on. Those crusty old creatures called the Council want to meet with us."  
  
"Do you know anything of respect?" Obi-Wan asked Roth. Roth didn't bother to answer. Obi-Wan sighed and looked down at Anakin. "Everything that comes out of that man's mouth is a lie."  
  
Anakin's eyes were glittering in amusement, but he nodded compliantly. Obi- Wan began following his old friend and comrade, and Anakin stayed in-step beside him. "Why does the Council want to see us, Master?"  
  
"I'm assuming to give us another assignment. Apparently they don't understand what a vacation is."  
  
"You're getting old and creaky, Obi-Wan. I'm ready to go on another mission. Especially if we're going to get to go with Roth. He's really cool!"  
  
"It's *Master* Roth to you, Padawan," Obi-Wan corrected. He shook his head. People always loved Roth. Was that a little bit of jealousy making its way into Obi-Wan's subconsciousness? He shook his head. *Of course not.*  
  
"Of course not what?" Anakin asked.  
  
"Don't read people's thoughts, Ani, it's an invasion of privacy," Obi-Wan said automatically.  
  
"I can't help it," Anakin protested. "You shouldn't think so loud."  
  
Obi-Wan sighed once more. He couldn't yell at Anakin because it was true. The boy's powers were beyond anything the Jedi Temple had seen in its walls before, and most of the time Anakin could barely grasp control of them. What he needed was someone to show him how to develope those powers, how to use them for the greater good. Obi-Wan wondered repeatedly whether that person was really himself. He never said it aloud, but sometimes he wondered whether he was the right person to be training Anakin; whether he could do Anakin's powers justice.  
  
It was fairly easy to get through the doors to the Council since they had been expected for an interview nearly ten minutes before. Obi-Wan hated to be late for anything, let alone a meeting with the Jedi Council, but it was a rule in the Temple not to interrupt a duel of lightsabers; you could break someone's concentration, and someone could end up missing a limb.  
  
The four of them filed into the center of the room. Roth and Obi-Wan stood side-by-side facing Masters Yoda and Windu; their Padawans moved to stand in front of them. In unison, the four Jedi bowed with respect.  
  
"Excuse us for being late, but our Padawans were matched in a duel," Obi- Wan drawled softly and apologetically. He bowed his head shortly to strengthen his apology.  
  
Master Yoda nodded, his ears moving with his fuzzy head. "Accepted, your apology is. Know you why we called you here?"  
  
"For a mission, I supposed," Obi-Wan answered.  
  
"Yes, yes indeed." Yoda looked down at his feet, closing his great eyes into little slits while his ears moved in a rhythm.  
  
"As you may already know, Chancellor Palpatine's life was threatened last night by an assassinator," Mace Windu began to explain. "He requested our presence, and we came immediately. We offered him protection, and he gladly took that offer, but he also asked for something else. He wants someone to help his security in finding out who was behind this so that he can bring them to court for what they did. He doesn't want his life to be endangered again. It was a mere miss last night. Had one of his security officers not sensed the threat, he wouldn't be alive today."  
  
"You're asking us to perform this task?" Roth asked. He glanced at Obi-Wan with raised eyebrows. I can imagine myself getting something like this, but with your reputation . . . isn't this a little degrading?  
  
I do what the Council asks of me, Obi-Wan answered. Protecting the Chancellor *is* an important job, Roth.  
  
Roth snorted, and Master Windu sent him a sharp gaze. "Yes, Roth, we are asking you to perform this task. Because we think the job will be finished quicker this way, we want you both working on security *and* trying to find out who this assassinator is." He looked at Obi-Wan. "We were going to send you and your apprentice to a conflict in the Uun system, after the last week of the month of absence you requested, but Chancellor Palpatine requested you two personally. After many hours of meditating, the Council has decided that the Force wills your presence there."  
  
Obi-Wan nodded, accepting this. Personally, he'd rather be working in protection than settling a conflict in some system he'd never even heard of. "When do we start?"  
  
"I told the Chancellor that we would send the Jedi over today. Go to your rooms and pack your things; the Chancellor will give you a room in his security, so there's no need to stay here. There will be a shuttle waiting outside for you. Don't take longer than five minutes packing."  
  
The four Jedi bowed in unison once more; as they began to walk out of the room in a straight line, the many Council members murmered "may the Force be with you" at the same time.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"I expect the Jedi Council has explained to you what I want," Chancellor Palpatine said after the formal greetings between the four Jedi and himself. He folded his hands carefully on his desk. "I cannot rest until I find out who would attempt to kill me."  
  
"Has it not happened before?" Roth asked bluntly. Obi-Wan shot him a look. "I mean, you're in such high regards with such a high position and all."  
  
Palpatine looked at Roth coolly. "Of course it has happened before, but that was when I first accepted position as Supreme Chancellor. I assure you, Jedi Sagiv, it is not an everyday occurance to have a blaster aimed at your head."  
  
"Yes, of course," Roth replied. He bowed his head slightly. "Forgive me for my outburst."  
  
"It is forgotten," Palpatine said. He turned to Obi-Wan, and a smile came to his features, outlining his cold eyes. "Master Kenobi. And little Anakin! My, how long has it been since we last met?"  
  
"Three years," Anakin answered. Obi-Wan saw his blue eyes laced with hurt. "It was at the celebration of victory for the Naboo. After Master Qui-Gon's funeral."  
  
Obi-Wan felt a stab of pain, but he tried to ignore it. He'd gotten to the point where he could think about Qui-Gon fondly, but whenever he remembered that Qui-Gon was dead, it hurt like a blaster bolt right through the heart. Obi-Wan was glad to note that Palpatine's eyes became grave. "Yes, I remember," he murmered. "Qui-Gon Jinn was a fine man."  
  
Obi-Wan didn't want to continue the conversation. He coughed pointedly. "Can we get back on track?"  
  
Palpatine turned his gaze back to Obi-Wan, and for a fleeting instant the Jedi Knight thought that he could see right through him. "Yes, of course." He pressed a button on his desk. "Bridget, can you send in Zoilo and Sabé?"  
  
"Of course, Your Excellency," a female voice replied. "They're on their way now."  
  
Obi-Wan replayed the short conversation his mind again. A quick look at Anakin told him that his suspicions were right. Palpatine *had* said 'Sabé'. An image of Sabé the first time he saw her, startling him as he meditated, entered his mind. He tried to shake his mind of the memories. Thinking of Sabé was always bittersweet. It was wonderful to have memories of the saucy young woman, but at the same time he always longed for her presence, wondered what she was doing, if she was all right.  
  
The doors swished open. A tall, hulking man came into the room first. He moved over by Palpatine's desk and stood with a blank look in his eyes. Following the man, looking even smaller next to his form, was an already petite feminine form, drabbed in a long cloak. He had seen them standing in the waiting room, and at that time he'd felt something trying to surface in his mind. He felt like that again, and he began to get nervous. He couldn't see the girl's face, and he was too afraid to send a Force tendril her way. He was daring to hope that it was Sabé -- *his* Sabé  
  
"As I'm sure you suspected, these are not all of my security. They are the head of the department, and my most loyal body guards. In fact, it was this young woman who saved my life last night." Palpatine gestured at the woman then folded his hands on his desk and smiled at the Jedi. "Zoilo has been working with me for many years, longer than I can remember. Sabé, however, has been working with me for only a few months. Already she has worked her way up the ladder." Palpatine paused, glanced at her, then smiled again. "Obi-Wan, Anakin, I believe that you have met Sabé before. She was one of the Freedom Fighters in the Crisis of Naboo."  
  
Obi-Wan let out a breath that he hadn't been aware he was holding. It was Sabé. Now he felt uncertain. What was he supposed to do or say? He decided that ignoring that she was in the same room with him was the best bet for now. He didn't want anyone to suspect there was something going on with them, because he himself wasn't even sure about that. Oh, yes, they'd had something three years ago. Keyword: had.  
  
Obi-Wan nodded indifferently. "Yes, I think I remember her."  
  
Anakin was grinning from ear to ear, and Obi-Wan sensed that the boy was about to do something to embarrass them in front of the Chancellor. He tried to send a Force-message of Jedi calmness. It must have worked, because Anakin stood up straighter. He wasn't able to wipe away the smile though.  
  
Palpatine began to introduce the Jedi to Sabé and Zoilo. "These are Jedi Knights Obi-Wan Kenobi, who I'm sure you've both heard of, and Roth Sagiv. And, of course their apprentices, Anakin Skywalker and Beula Guiseppa; though they are young and small, do not underestimate a Jedi child. Especially young Anakin Skywalker."  
  
Obi-Wan felt a little guilty when he saw Palpatine wash over Roth and Beula with not so much as a second glance Roth and Beula's way while lavishing compliments on himself and Anakin. He hated the spotlight, and he knew with loathing that all of this would go straight to Anakin's already inflated head. "You're too kind to us, Your Excellency," Obi-Wan said abruptly. "To be blunt, I'd feel more comfortable if we could get directly to business. When do you want us to start investigating, and do you have any leads so far?"  
  
"Sabé?" Palpatine asked.  
  
The woman nodded at him. "I began searching through the Senate's library for possible suspects, but so far I have no leads. I know he had to be humanoid though, because he was disguised as one of the waiters at the banquet, and not one of them was alien." The woman paused for a second, then continued. "His presence was . . . twisted, angry, and bitter, but amoung all of the expected, I also felt something else . . . hopelessness and a deep sadness."  
  
Palpatine smirked at the Jedi. "Sabé has a . . . 'special' way with people," he explained.  
  
Roth's eyebrows were raised, but Obi-Wan felt protective of Sabé. He hadn't let anyone know of what they were doing before because he wasn't sure if it was illegal to train someone who hadn't attended the Jedi temple. He didn't want Roth to have a chance to contemplate what had been said, so he tried talking again. "Yes, I know," he said softly, daring to glance at her. He felt sudden panic. That wasn't what he'd meant to say! He coughed. "And about security," he began, looking back to Palpatine.  
  
"These are my heads of security, as I explained," Palpatine said, waving a hand at Zoilo and Sabé. "I have hundreds of individuals working altogether though. You will only have to worry about working with Zoilo and Sabé, however. When Sabé is on duty, you can let the Jedi children accompany her. She can hold her own, but I'm sure a little added help won't help. When Zoilo is on duty, though, I'd like either you or Jedi Sagiv to accompany him along with your Padawan. He doesn't have the keen senses that our Sabé does."  
  
"That's all right," Obi-Wan replied. "If you just let us know what we'll be doing in the next week or so, we can work it out so that whoever isn't on security duty is skimming the libraries for information."  
  
Palpatine picked up something off his desk and reached out to hand it to Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan took it and realized that it was a data card. "I'm glad to see you have this all planned out," he murmered.  
  
"I am a perfectionist," Palpatine said, a teasing note in his voice. He turned serious once again. "You will be staying on the same floor that I am staying on in my apartment building. I was given the whole floor when I became Chancellor, but I hardly ever use it. This way you will be close to Zoilo, Sabé, and I if anything should turn up." Palpatine glanced at a chrono on his desk. "I should be okay in my office with Zoilo and Bridget for now. Why don't you go get settled into your rooms and one of you come back in time for a dinner party I'm attending this evening."  
  
"That's perfect," Obi-Wan answered.  
  
"Wonderful. Sabé, can you take the Jedi to their rooms?"  
  
"Of course." Sabé bowed to the Chancellor, and the Jedi followed suit. Then she went to the doors and typed in the security code, gesturing for the Jedi to follow her.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The rooms on Chancellor Palpatine's floor were more luxurious than Obi-Wan had ever imagined. He'd never stayed in such a place before, and he could tell by Beula and Anakin's wide eyes, they were impressed too. Roth looked indifferent, but then Roth always looked indifferent. His eyes were sparkling though, and Obi-Wan knew from experience that he was planning something.  
  
"There are two bathrooms," Sabé continued. She had been describing the apartment as she showed them each room. "That way you can give the girl privacy."  
  
"Have you ever considered dropping the security act and going for a realtor agency?" Roth asked absently, as if it was a drill for him to say sarcastic comments.  
  
"I thought about it a lot when I was choosing a career, but Palpatine pays me pretty damn well," Sabé said.  
  
Roth raised his eyebrows. "Wow. Someone who jokes back." He eyed her suspiciously. "Do you always wear those robes, or are you afraid to show us your face?"  
  
Sabé reached a hand up and pulled the hood of her cloak back, revealing her elfish face and long hair, twirled up out of her way in an intricate fashion. Obi-Wan knew he was staring, but he found that he didn't care very much. If anything, she had grown more beautiful since the last time he saw her. She looked more . . . mature. Not that she wasn't mature before.  
  
"You're hair . . ." Obi-Wan blurted out.  
  
Sabé smoothed her hair self-consciously. "I know I'm not as good at hair as Yané . . ."  
  
"No, it looks great," Obi-Wan reassured her. "It's down." He remembered their last conversation. He had requested specifically that she leave it down the next time they met. He loved running his fingers through it.  
  
Sabé blushed, obviously remembering the same conversation. "Well, after I stopped working for Padmé as her handmaiden, I started wearing my hair in ways that didn't hurt like hell."  
  
Obi-Wan laughed lightly and was about to reply, but he was quickly interrupted.  
  
"Did somebody say Padmé?"  
  
Obi-Wan recognized his Padawan's voice with a muffled groan. Anakin and Beula had been looking at the rooms, trying to decide whom got which one. Yet Anakin was still alert enough to hear Padmé's name mentioned.  
  
"I did," Sabé said.  
  
Anakin looked at her sharply. "Which one of the handmaidens were you?"  
  
"She was the one who was pretending to be the Queen," Obi-Wan answered.  
  
"Oh." Anakin's eyes widened. "Is she the one you had wild, passionate sex with?"  
  
"Anakin!" Obi-Wan said sharply. Roth began laughing, and Obi-Wan noticed that Sabé was blushing and looking at the floor. "He didn't mean that," he explained.  
  
"Yes, I did," Anakin said, not to be quieted so easily.  
  
"No, you didn't," Obi-Wan gritted out, his jaw clenched so tightly he could barely make out the words. What did you go and say that for?  
  
"I'm sorry, Master," Anakin apologized. "What I meant to say was, is she the one who Qui-Gon yelled at you for bringing into our quarters?"  
  
"I'm sorry," Obi-Wan said, looking at Sabé.  
  
She lifted her head, and Obi-Wan saw that she was smirking. She shrugged.  
  
Roth's laughter had turned into sharp gasps, and he finally managed to calm down. "Does he always say things like that?"  
  
"Pretty much."  
  
"I don't see why you complain all the time, then. I'd love to have a Padawan as amusing as him."  
  
"He's up for sale if you're interested. I won't charge much."  
  
"Don't say that," Anakin interrupted, his blue eyes shinier than usual as he stared unblinkingly at Obi-Wan.  
  
Obi-Wan recognized his mistake immediately. Anakin clung to him like a lifesaver, and he hated Obi-Wan even joking about finding a new Padawan and just letting him go. In Anakin's eyes, Obi-Wan was the only person whom he loved that was still in his life. I'm sorry, Ani, I didn't mean to upset you.  
  
"I'd better get going," Sabé said, backing towards the door. "I need to get back to Palpatine with news of who's going to be attending dinner with him tonight. Then I'll show the rest of you around the library and we'll get to work."  
  
"Roth is going with Palpatine," Obi-Wan said.  
  
"Thanks for asking," Roth said sarcastically.  
  
"Do you mind?"  
  
Roth shrugged. "I guess not."  
  
"Then I'll tell the Chancellor," Sabé concluded.  
  
"Wait!" Anakin said. "I want you to tell me about Padmé."  
  
Obi-Wan put a straining hand on his shoulder. "If you want to talk to Sabé about personal matters, you can wait until later. Right now we have a job to do, and so does Sabé."  
  
Anakin looked anxiously at Sabé, and she smiled reassuringly at him. "We can talk later, Anakin." She turned around to slap her hand on the security panel. The doors slid open and she started to leave, but she turned around quickly to add another comment. "I'm going to come back at eighteen-hundred hours with a shuttle for you to ride to the dinner and a shuttle for the rest of us to get to the library."  
  
"I can't wait," Roth said with mock-enthusiasm as she shut the doors behind her. He turned to Obi-Wan immediately. "What was that about?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Ani's little comment."  
  
"False observations."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Really."  
  
"Anakin?"  
  
Anakin looked up at Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan slightly tilted his head, indicating for Anakin to not say anything more. "False observations," Anakin confirmed.  
  
Roth smirked. "We'll talk later, Anakin. Preferably *alone*. If Obi-Wan has any glimmer of a love life, I'd like to be informed."  
  
"Don't worry. I'll let you know before I alert the press," Anakin assured him.  
  
Roth chuckled. "You're a funny little guy."  
  
There was a shout from one of the bedrooms that sounded an awful lot like "This one's mine!"  
  
The small comment managed to turn the conversation around to which rooms they wanted, and Obi-Wan couldn't be more relieved. They walked to the back of the apartment where the four bedrooms and two baths were located and began a good-natured battle over who got the master bedroom.  
  
* * * * *  
  
AN: If you're reading this and like it, could you please review and let me know? Just drop a review. I'm getting to feel that either nobody likes these fics, or nobody likes the Sabé/Obi-Wan genre. Well, this one isn't all romance, as you may be able to see. A plot is starting to show through. 


	3. Chapter Three

Author's Note: Thank you all a million times over for the reviews I've gotten so far. I've worked hard on this fic, and I'm glad to see that you all are enjoying it thus far. I hope this chapter is satisfactory. Remember to drop me a line!  
  
~Haley  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Now, before we leave, let's make sure you've got it straight," Obi-Wan began, turning around and speaking in a voice barely above a whisper so that Sabé, in the next room, wouldn't hear.  
  
"I know, I know," Anakin snapped, annoyed. Afterall, they'd been over this several times. "It was a joke, you weren't serious."  
  
"Exactly. Remember this," Obi-Wan instructed. He had been mortified beyond belief when Anakin had asked Sabé if she was the one he'd had wild, passionate sex with. He couldn't believe that Anakin had even remembered the sarcastic comment he made years ago to Qui-Gon. Obi-Wan just didn't want Anakin saying anything else like that to Sabé. He wanted to find out where they stood first. Then she would get to know Anakin and realize that the little boy was clueless beyond belief. Then Anakin could say whatever the hell he wanted to say, and Obi-Wan wouldn't care.  
  
"And don't act like a gushing obsessive-compulsive when you mention Padmé either," Obi-Wan added, putting a hand on Anakin's shoulder and leading him out of the bedroom.  
  
Anakin looked offended. "I do not!"  
  
"Trust me, Ani, you do," Obi-Wan said dryly.  
  
"You guys done with your little 'guy talk'?" Sabé asked when they were in the main living room. She was sitting on one of the couches and tapping her fingers impatiently against the arm of it. She arched an eyebrow at Obi- Wan, amused.  
  
Obi-Wan knew he was blushing. "Yes," he muttered.  
  
"How's Padmé?" Anakin asked, his voice loud compared to Obi-Wan's embarrassed muttering.  
  
Sabé's eyes were twinkling, and she winked at Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan felt something in his stomach flip over. It reminded him of when he and Sabé had first started to become friends, before they kissed. Obi-Wan felt a tiny smile flutter over his face. He remembered every one of their kisses in vivid detail. The smell of her hair, the feel of her soft skin . . .  
  
". . . fine. In fact, when I came to Coruscant she asked me to tell you she said hi if we happened to run into each other. I don't think she realizes how big this planet is and how demanding my job is. If I'd had a chance, I would have visited the Jedi Temple . . ." Sabé trailed off and glanced at Obi-Wan fleetingly. "Things just didn't work out."  
  
"Ani--"  
  
"I'm not acting like a compulsive-obsessive!" Anakin defended before Obi- Wan could continue.  
  
Sabé laughed quietly at his outburst, but Obi-Wan was embarrassed. "No, Anakin, I was just going to mention that we'd better get going soon. The Chancellor seems like the type of person who wants to see progress, so let's try and get some possible leads before the night is over."  
  
"It shouldn't be that hard," Sabé said, standing up. She had taken the cloak off from earlier, and now she was dressed in a cerulean-blue flight suit that left little to the imagination and brought out her brilliant blue eyes. Obi-Wan was transfixed by those eyes, and he barely caught her next words. "What we have is data on each and every case that was presented before the Senate. With the help of a computer, I've narrowed it down to the past four months, and only humans who presented it. It's most likely that the attempted assassinator is someone who's case was rejected or something of the sort."  
  
"Smart thinking," Obi-Wan commented. "Where is the library?"  
  
"It's in the Senate office building. It's not that far away actually, this way Palpatine doesn't take too long to get there in case of emergency. It's in the lower floors in the same building that the Chancellor's office was in."  
  
"Lower levels?" Obi-Wan retorted, a smirk on his face.  
  
Sabé smirked right back. "Not that low."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Anakin asked, looking between both of them.  
  
Obi-Wan patted him on the back. "You'll understand when your older." 'And it's your twenty-first birthday and Roth Sagiv decides that he should take you out to celebrate,' he added silently.  
  
"I heard that," Anakin said in a sing-songy voice.  
  
"I did too for that matter," Sabé said. "You really shouldn't think so loud, Obi-Wan."  
  
Anakin scrutinized her for a moment. "You can hear people's thoughts?"  
  
"Only people I have a bond with. So . . . just Obi-Wan and the people I worked with during security in Naboo."  
  
"I can do it with everyone," Anakin said, a bragging note in his voice. "Not Master Yoda though. He can tell when I'm doing it, and he gives me the 'Dark side' speech."  
  
"Are you still . . ." Obi-Wan trailed off, looking at Sabé meaningful.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Um . . . learning?"  
  
"Oh, that." Sabé glanced at Anakin nervously. He was shrewdly observing them, interested in whatever it was that they were saying. "You know, why don't we make it a point to have a private meeting together where we can . . . talk."  
  
"That sounds great," Obi-Wan said, grinning like a mad man. He couldn't wait to be alone with Sabé. He could talk to her forever and never get tired of her intelligence and wit.  
  
"Can I come?" Anakin asked brightly.  
  
Obi-Wan didn't even glance at Anakin. "No." He gestured to the door, and the three of them began to leave the apartment.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Remember that little thing we discussed?"  
  
"The joke?"  
  
"Yeah. That's why not."  
  
Anakin's eyes went wide. He looked at Sabé, then back at Obi-Wan. Then he smiled. "Can I tell Roth about this?"  
  
"That's *Master* Roth to you, Ani, and no. If you do, I'll tell Beula about what happened on our first mission. You know, the one on Ashrun."  
  
Anakin's eyes went even wider. "You wouldn't."  
  
"I would."  
  
Anakin glared at Obi-Wan, then stomped in front of them to pout with his back turned to his Master. Obi-Wan looked at Sabé, walking by his side, to see that she was smiling. "What?" he asked, keeping his voice low so that Anakin wouldn't over hear.  
  
"You two," Sabé replied. She gestured between Anakin and Obi-Wan. "You've made a lot of progress. I still remember when you were too insecure, when you thought that you wouldn't be the right one to take on Anakin. I think you made the right choice. The bond you've created is . . . tangible."  
  
"Really?" Obi-Wan was surprised. "I never thought about it before."  
  
"You're getting along great. Much better than even I expected," Sabé said. Her smile turned soft. "How was it when you returned to the Temple? Without Qui-Gon?"  
  
Obi-Wan shivered involuntarily and looked straight ahead. He shrugged. "You know."  
  
"No, I don't." Sabé put a hand on his arm. He felt his skin heat up at the light touch, all the way through his thick Jedi robes. "Tell me."  
  
Obi-Wan turned to look at her. "It was horrible. Complete torture. People kept coming up to me and talking about Qui-Gon, all of the wonderful things he did, how sorry they were, how close they knew I was to him. All I wanted was to forget. I wanted to stay numb, but I just can't do that. Then I felt like the Council was breathing down my back. A Jedi knows no pain." Obi-Wan snorted. "Fuck that. I felt pain. It was excruciating. They just didn't understand. The missed Qui-Gon, I could tell, but they bounced back immediately. They couldn't understand why I was still moping around, why I got so angry whenever anyone mentioned my Master's name."  
  
Sabé began to rub Obi-Wan's arm soothingly. Or at least, what she thought was soothingly. In reality, it was driving him crazy. "I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for you," she said softly.  
  
"It's not your fault," Obi-Wan said. "You did enough for me as it was. I think I would be catatonic if it weren't for you."  
  
"When all else fails, yell," Sabé joked, but her heart didn't seem to be in it. She turned serious almost immediately. "How are you now?"  
  
"Now? I'm a lot better. I can talk about it. I can listen to stories about Qui-Gon that are amusing and remember my Master in reverence. But when people say how sorry they are, when people start to feel sympathetic, I just close up. I feel that pain all over again. Because when I'm remembering him, I'm forgetting that he's dead. If I just don't think about that, it works."  
  
"It's a lot of grief to deal with," Sabé agreed. "You're a very strong person, Obi-Wan, and you've gone a long way. I remember when you first woke up in my bed the next day."  
  
"If it weren't for you, I'd probably still be like that."  
  
"It's not all me, Obi-Wan. It takes strength to choose going back to your old life, to be able to remember the loved one as they were."  
  
"What was the other choice?"  
  
"Becoming a bitter, cynical person."  
  
"Ah. Can't see myself ever becoming that."  
  
"No, I can't either. No matter how hard life becomes for you, you just deal with situation. It makes me think that you can deal with anything."  
  
"I doubt that, but thank you." Obi-Wan looked at her closely, and she met his eyes. His stomach did the weird twisting thing again. "I mean it, Sabé. I haven't talked to anyone about Qui-Gon. Not in the way I just did. Something about you just makes me feel comfortable, at ease."  
  
Sabé looked away. She obviously wasn't ready for a serious talk about what was between them, which was where Obi-Wan was leading to, because she chose to use a joke to sidestep a deep and meaningful comment. "You mean you didn't tell Roth?"  
  
" 'Cause he's such a greath listener and all." Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. "Don't get me wrong, Roth is my best friend. But he wouldn't understand. He chooses to make jokes throughout his life to keep the pain away. He just can't deal with anything remotely serious."  
  
"Why is that so hard to believe?" Sabé asked sarcastically.  
  
"What are you guys talking about?" Anakin demanded, appearing right in front of them out of nowhere with an exasperated look on his face. "You've been walking slower than Yoda."  
  
" *Master* Yoda, and it's not your concern what we were discussing," Obi- Wan said. He looked around and realized embarrassedly that somehow they'd ended up at the front of the building. Traffic was zooming by through a plexi-glass window.  
  
"We can use one of the speeders Palpatine keeps for his security staff to get around," Sabé said, walking to the left towards a doorway at the end of the hall. Obi-Wan and Anakin followed her.  
  
"Can I drive it?" Anakin asked, excited.  
  
"For Force's sake, no," Obi-Wan said, a note of anxiety in his voice. He heard Sabé laughing at his swift reply. Anakin's face fell, but he didn't continue to plead. He knew from experience that it would do him no good.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Sabé watched as Obi-Wan bent over Anakin, sitting at a computer, and instructed the boy in something. She felt her heart do something strange, and she knew that she was staring, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the sight. Watching Obi-Wan with Anakin, the way his voice softened just the slightest when he addressed the boy, was giving her a sappy feeling that she didn't usually get.  
  
They had been searching in the library for over an hour, and Sabé made sure to keep track of the time. She agreed with Obi-Wan's earlier observation. Palpatine liked results, and she wanted to present him with some by the time he got back from his dinner party. Anakin was searching through the information and coming up with humans who had had cases in the past four months that didn't work out. Then Sabé would look over them and the background information on the Senators, looking for something that might strike her as important. Obi-Wan was skimming over the walls stuffed with data disks, searching for anything that might be useful.  
  
Obi-Wan was finished instructing Anakin, and he stood up straight. His eyes seemed to magically glue themselves to Sabé. She knew that he knew she had been staring, so she quickly looked at the screen of her computer, knowing that her cheeks were giving her embarrassment away. She felt him come closer, and before she knew it he was directly behind her, looking at the screen over her shoulder. How was she supposed to work now? She was frustrated and breathless at the same time -- which just made her more frustrated.  
  
"When's your next break?" Obi-Wan murmured.  
  
Sabé felt her brain to a spinning number, and she tried to push through the dizziness enough to concentrate on answering him. What she had to say was very simple. She could do it. "What?"  
  
"You said we could talk. Alone," Obi-Wan reminded her. "I was wondering when we could do that."  
  
"Right." Sabé thought about it. "Um . . . tomorrow night. After everyone is asleep."  
  
"Sneaky," Obi-Wan commented.  
  
"Neither of us have to attend anything with the Chancellor at night."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Still, you will have to be sneaky. If someone catches you leaving your apartment at oh-one-hundred hours they might get suspicious."  
  
"What would they get suspicious about?"  
  
"I don't know. Why don't you tell me?" Sabé pushed. She wasn't going to make herself look stupid until Obi-Wan told her that he still felt the same way about her.  
  
"Roth and Anakin might get suspicious that we're sneaking off to have wild, passionate sex," Obi-Wan joked.  
  
Sabé decided it might be fun to tease him. "Would that be a correct assumption?"  
  
Obi-Wan stopped laughing at his joke abruptly. She swear she could hear him gulp. "I-I don't know," he stuttered, his voice sounding slightly strained.  
  
Sabé stood up from the computer she'd been looking at. She briefly pressed herself against Obi-Wan, pretending that she had to do so to get out of a tight place. She caught Obi-Wan's eyes, and this time she knew that he was gulping. He looked almost scared and hopeful at the same time. She lowered lashes towards him in a style that Rabé had taught her. "Then I guess you'd better find out."  
  
Before he could reply, she slipped out of his grasp and went to Anakin. He hadn't noticed anything, thank the maker. "Have you finished with that disk?"  
  
"I'm just about finished," Anakin replied. He finished reading something, then popped the disk out and handed it to Sabé.  
  
Sabé held the now-warm disk in her hand and turned around to return to her computer station. Obi-Wan seemed to be just snapping out of a daze. "You'd better get Anakin some more information to look over." Sabé smiled innocently. "What are you doing just standing around like that?"  
  
Obi-Wan raised his eyebrows. "I don't know. Something just came over me, I guess."  
  
"Hmm," Sabé said, pretending to sound concerned. "Is it anything to worry about?"  
  
Obi-Wan eyed her. "I'm still not sure."  
  
* * * * *  
  
The next morning, Obi-Wan awoke with a smile on his face, his mind lingering on a pleasant dream with a certain spunky security officer who had teased him mercilessly the night before. He stretched out on the bed and stared at the ceiling, his mind still foggy from the left overs of sleep. His mental chronometer had woken him up, and he knew he should get out of bed and into the 'fresher. Sabé had said that she would go over to Palpatine's office to show him their suspects in the morning, see if he could remember anything about them, then she'd come to the apartment the Jedi were staying in so that they could come up with a plan of action.  
  
He finally gathered up the energy to get out of bed, and his first stop was the refresher. After cleaning himself up, he changed into his usual white tunic and pants, deciding to leave the cloak off. The Jedi robes were heavy and hot, and he only wore them at the beginning of missions to show his rank.  
  
He went into the living room area; it was seperated from the kitchen by a long breakfast bar, and he saw that Beula was doing something on one of the counter tops. Anakin had propped himself up on the counter beside her and was flipping through what Obi-Wan thought was a cook book. Roth either wasn't up yet or was in the 'fresher.  
  
"Good morning," Beula chirped cheerfully. "I'm making breakfast."  
  
"Smells good," Obi-Wan commented awkwardly. Being around Beula was odd. Sometimes she would be shy and adoring around him, which he hated, but the rest of the time she seemed to be a fun girl. Right now was one of those times, Obi-Wan hoped. It made him realize why Roth picked her as an apprentice. She had his sense of fun and wittiness.  
  
"When is Sabé coming over?" Anakin asked, looking up from the cook book and showing actual interest.  
  
Obi-Wan looked at a chronometer in the living room. "Pretty soon. Are you making enough for five, Beula?"  
  
"No, I'm making enough for twenty. Anakin's eating, remember?"  
  
"Hey!" Anakin protested as Beula and Obi-Wan laughed at him. "I need nutrients. I'm growing."  
  
"Well I hate to see the end result," Obi-Wan commented dryly. "If you grow at the rate you eat, you'll be taller than any other man in the galaxy."  
  
"I'm already almost as tall as you," Anakin boasted. He looked Obi-Wan up and down. "But then, you're on the short side."  
  
"That's not the way to speak to your Master."  
  
"Funny how you only say that when I insult you," Anakin quipped. He looked down at the book in his lap again. "Are you following the directions right, Beula?"  
  
Beula gave him an annoyed look. "I'm not quite sure since you keep flipping the pages."  
  
"I'm bored," Anakin complained.  
  
"Go to the 'fresher. Force knows you need to get cleaned up," Obi-Wan said.  
  
"I was going for adorably scruffy. Was that not apparent?"  
  
"The scruffy part is shining through," Obi-Wan said.  
  
"Am I adorable, Beula?"  
  
"Of course not, Anakin," Beula said patiently.  
  
"Aw. You know I am," Anakin said as he jumped down from the counter. "One of these days you're going to be upset that you didn't make your move while you still could."  
  
"What are you now, Mr. Suave?" Obi-Wan asked. He thought about it. "Or have you been spending too much time with Roth?"  
  
"I think it's the latter," Beula put in.  
  
"Definately the first thing," Anakin said self-assuredly as he left the room. "Now I'm gonna try for a different look."  
  
"Clean?" Obi-Wan suggested.  
  
"That could work." Anakin pretended to look thoughtful as he disappeared from sight down the hallway.  
  
Obi-Wan grinned after his Padawan; Anakin really was amusing most of the time. Annoying the rest of the time. Sometimes he was tiring . . . Obi-Wan shook his head. He was a Jedi Knight, he should be thinking about more sophistcated things.  
  
Like Sabé.  
  
Obi-Wan sat down at the breakfast bar and watched absently as Beula continued to prepare their meal. Really what he was seeing was Sabé, feeling her pressed against him, hearing her flirtatious comments, smelling her hair. If possible, it smelt even better than he remembered. Maybe she changed shampoo.  
  
"What are you thinking about?" Beula asked, interrupting his thoughts.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"You're completely spaced out," Beula supplied.  
  
"I'm not fully awake yet," Obi-Wan lied, hoping that she hadn't caught that sappy dreamy-eyed expression he knew he had been sporting.  
  
Beula nodded, accepting his answer.  
  
Obi-Wan felt suddenly awkward. He knew he'd better say something to make the silence less penetrating, but his mind was at a blank. He was saved from the awkwardness however, when the door chime went off, alerting them of a visitor. Obi-Wan knew he it was, and perhaps that was why he practically leaped out of his chair and ran across the living room to slap his hand on the security pad.  
  
The doors slid open, and Sabé stood in the hallway. She was wearing that gawdawful cloak again. Obi-Wan decided that he wasn't particularly fond of it.  
  
"What did he think?" Obi-Wan asked.  
  
"He's very relieved that we are making progress," Sabé said. "May I come in?"  
  
"Do you have to ask?" Obi-Wan retorted. She stepped inside, looking nervous, and Obi-Wan shut the door behind her. "You can sit down if you want. Beula is making breakfast."  
  
"Beula?" Sabé asked.  
  
"Roth's apprentice."  
  
"Ah." Sabé nodded in understanding. She began to shrug off her cloak, and Obi-Wan was glad to see she was wearing another flightsuit.  
  
"Do you wear those for convenience or to drive the opposite sex crazy?" Obi- Wan asked. He immediately was shocked by what he'd blurted out, but he tried to appear cool about it.  
  
Sabé was blushing as Obi-Wan took her cloak from her and laid it on a stand near the door. He wasn't sure what was supposed to go there, but it was a good a cloak rack as anything.  
  
"Convenience," Sabé said. She smiled. "The latter is just a bonus."  
  
Obi-Wan pretended to take a great deal of time looking her over. "My bonus or yours?"  
  
"Both. Watching men drool over me is a definate confident boost," Sabé said. She winked at him to show that she was kidding. Obi-Wan knew she wasn't shallow enough to really think something like that, but he enjoyed the wink all the same.  
  
"Who drools over you?" Obi-Wan asked, playing along.  
  
"Well, you for starters."  
  
"I'm not drooling. I'm just observing."  
  
"Check the mirror, Obi-Wan."  
  
"Can't take my eyes off of you."  
  
"When did you become such a smooth-talker?"  
  
"I've been around Roth for the past day and a half."  
  
"Oh. That explains it. It's kind of out-of-character for you."  
  
"And you know me so well?"  
  
"Why of course."  
  
"What am I thinking right now?"  
  
Sabé laughed. "I'm not going to say it out loud."  
  
There was a big bang of metal on tile, and Obi-Wan and Sabé were snapped out of their teasing banter. Beula was blushing bright red, and she leaned down to pick up a bowl that she had dropped on the floor. "Sorry."  
  
"No, it's fine. Are you okay?" Obi-Wan asked, walking back to the bar.  
  
"I'm fine. My hands just slipped."  
  
"You're sure?" Obi-Wan couldn't resist adding.  
  
"Yes," Beula said, obviously exasperated. She placed the bowl on the counter and turned her back to him.  
  
"What was that noise?"  
  
Obi-Wan turned around slowly to see Roth walking into the kitchen, a towel around his neck. He grinned madly at them all. " 'Morning."  
  
"Beula dropped a bowl," Obi-Wan said simply.  
  
Roth shrugged. "She does that a lot. Kind of clumsy." There was an odd silence where Roth gave Beula a long look. Obviously he had expected her to reply.  
  
"I have the data disks," Sabé said awkwardly, looking as if she wondered if it was the right time to bring it up.  
  
Roth looked relieved that she'd interrupted the silence. "You do? Let's eat breakfast, then we'll go over them and try and find a lead."  
  
"That's what I was thinking. I've already eaten though, so do you mind if I use your holo viewer to look at these? I'll get a head start."  
  
"No, go ahead," Roth said, pointing her to the low table in front of the couch where several items inculding a holo viewer were sitting.  
  
Sabé went over to the table and set down her stuff, pulling holo viewer closer to her. Obi-Wan caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned his head to see Anakin walking into the main living area.  
  
"Did I succeed?" he asked, doing a little twirl with a grin on his face.  
  
"Of course," Obi-Wan said; he didn't feel like arguing playfully with Anakin.  
  
Anakin looked disappointed, and he sat down at the breakfast bar. Roth and Obi-Wan followed suit, and a few minutes later Beula began serving them their breakfast. They began to eat in silence until a small cry from the living room startled them.  
  
"This is it!" Sabé cried, jumping up from the couch and setting the holoviewer on the breakfast bar. There was a picture of a young-looking man with light features. "This is our guy."  
  
"How do you know?" Obi-Wan asked, looking over the little information that was scrolled next to the guys' picture.  
  
"He disappeared right after his case was presented, and hasn't been seen since."  
  
"Maybe he went back to his homeplanet."  
  
"Maybe," Sabé admitted. "But that doesn't feel right to me. He had a partner, a female, who's still living on Coruscant. Let's go meet with her today, ask her a few questions."  
  
"What's his name?" Anakin asked, looking at the picture interestedly.  
  
"Clemens Lorcan. He represents an unknown planatary system called Lark," Sabé answered. 


	4. Chapter Four

Gemina Yrrk stumbled to the front of her apartment, that pathetic hopefulness making her hurry as fast as she could. She thrust her hand onto the button to open the doors, not wanting to waste another second. A young- looking man in a white tunic and a smaller, very petite woman in a tight- fitting powder blue body suit stood just outside her door in the hallway. Gem was hit with a wave of sickening disappointment, as she was everytime she answered the door anymore. It wasn't Clem, it would never be Clem, and she desperately needed to accept this.  
  
"Excuse us, ma'am," the man began, his polite voice lilting beautifully with a soft accent, "but we need to know if this is the residence of Gemina Yrrk. If, in fact, you are Mistress Yrrk."  
  
Gem's eyebrows knitted together in suspicion. If they got Clem, maybe they could get her too. "That depends on who's asking and what they want," she retorted harshly.  
  
The woman's eyes began to soften. She seemed to be trying to communicate with Gem that she understood. Gem wanted to laugh bitterly. Nobody understood! But she couldn't . . . that laugh could very easily turn into tears. In fact, most actions that she did now days could easily turn into tears. It became apparent with each slowly passing day that Clem wasn't coming back, that he never would.  
  
"Were you Senator Clemens Lorcan's partner and assistant?" she asked, keeping her voice soft and caring.  
  
Gem's heart just about stopped. SHe clutched at the wall, searching for any kind of support. Her legs had mysteriously turned to the substance of Bacta gel. People had come and gone, but not one of them had mentioned Clem. When Gem spoke, her voice was a hoarse whisper. "Is he all right? Do you know where he is? What's wrong with him? He's not--" Gem gulped and forced the word out "--dead?"  
  
The two exchanged a look. Gem felt irrationally angry that they wouldn't share whatever it was that passed between them with her. "Tell me!" she shrieked forcefully.  
  
The man looked taken aback, but the woman kept her cool, calming manner. "Those are the precise questions we came to ask you, Mistress Yrrk, at least, I'm assuming that that's who you are. We, also, are searching for Senator Lorcan. Naturally, we came to question you first."  
  
Gem felt cold suddenly, cold and frightened. "Why are you searching for Clem?" she dared to ask, her voice barely that of a whisper. She wondered after asking it if she wanted to know the answer.  
  
The woman looked up at the man for support. He put a hand on her arm comfortingly and smiled at Gem. "I'm a Jedi Knight, Obi-Wan Kenobi," the man introduced, ignoring her question. Gem felt even worse when she recognized his name. Something bad was happening with Clem. Why else would they get this prestigious Jedi on the case? "And this is my Jedi-sort-of- Padawan, Sabé . . ." He trailed off, freezing, then turned his brilliant blue gaze to look at the woman in panic.  
  
Sabé finished for him, a dry note in her voice as she rolled her eyes. "Yéré. Sabé Yéré." She looked up at the Jedi and smirked, then turned back to Gem. "I work under Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's security--"  
  
"Palpatine," Gem snarled disdainfully.  
  
Sabé went on as if she hadn't been interrupted. "Mistress Yrrk, about two days ago an attempt was made on the Chancellor's life. We regret to inform you that Senator Lorcan is our prime suspect in the matter."  
  
Gem felt numb, and she wanted a moment to absorb the information, to turn it over in her mind, but the Jedi Knight kept on talking.  
  
"We need to ask you a few questions about Senator Lorcan, Mistress Yrrk, if you don't mind," he said, his voice friendly and open.  
  
Something in Gem snapped. She wanted to hit these people repeatedly, to make them pay for hurting her so much. "Clem would never do such a thing! He's not like that! He-he's sensitive and caring." Gem knew she was crying, but she kept on going. "All he wanted was to save our people . . ."  
  
"We're familiar with your planet's case presented to the Senate about a month ago," Kenobi began.  
  
Gem didn't let him finish. She stopped forward and pointed an accusing finger at him. He and Sabé recoiled at what she hoped was fury in her eyes. "No, you *aren't* familiar with our case. Nobody is. No one but Clem and me."  
  
"Could you please explain?" Sabé asked gently.  
  
"You won't believe me," Gem told Sabé matter-of-factly. "Nobody does. No . . . not our Chancellor Palpatine. He's such a *great* leader."  
  
The two exchanged another look. Gem was satisfied to see that this one was full of confusion and slight fear. "From what you can see, Clem and I thought we would play a stupid, immature joke on the Senate? To bring in false data just to get a few kicks?" They nodded reluctantly. "Well that's not what happened."  
  
"What happened?" Kenobi asked, looking intrigued.  
  
Gem shook her head and looked down at the floor. All of her anger had run out, and now she felt weak. "Clem went to see Chancellor Palpatine before we presented our case to the Senate. The Chancellor requested this himself, and we were too nervous to question why. He asked to borrow Clem's data, to look it over himself. Then he returned it at the last minute. It was a huge man, scary as hell. Even Clem was intimidated by him, and Clem doesn't get intimidated. We didn't have time to look over the disks before we went out on the floor. Do you know what happened?"  
  
"I can guess," Kenobi said softly, doubtfully.  
  
Gem glared in his direction. "Somebody switched the data. Somewhere in your precious Chancellor's office lies the *real* data." Gem paused, took a deep breath. "Maybe it wasn't Palpatine. It could have been anyone, I'm open to the idea. But something about that man is cold. Something is . . . *wrong* about him."  
  
There was a stunned pause. Then Sabé intervened. "You must understand that we are trying to rationalize this, so don't get offended at my next question. Why would anyone want to switch the data? From what I've seen, Lark is a peaceful planet. Who would want to make a laughing stock of it?"  
  
"The same person who set off a biological weapon to mass murder the population of my planet," Gem said, tilting her chin upwards with conviction.  
  
Kenobi's eyes widened. "You're not saying . . ."  
  
"I think that Chancellor Palpatine wanted to kill off Lark?" Gem finished bitterly. "It sounds ludicrous, doesn't it? What motive does he have? That's why I'm not blaming it on him. I'm blaming it on*somebody*. Somebody on the inside. Someone who could have gotten to those tapes between the time when Clem met with Palpatine and when they were returned to us. Maybe it was that creature that gave them back--"  
  
"Zoilo?" Sabé snorted. "He works with me in security. He hasn't the brains to pull something like this off, but I do admit he does seem creepy enough."  
  
"You know him?" Gem asked.  
  
"Unfortunately," Kenobi muttered. Sabé elbowed him.  
  
Gem felt nostalgia rise up inside of her, watching these two and their silent body language. She wondered if she and Clem had appeared that way. Before he disappeared, of course. "Do you know where Clem is?"  
  
"I'm afraid not," Sabé said, and she sounded sincere. Gem decided that she liked this woman. "When was the last time you spoke to him?"  
  
Gem bit her lip nervously, replaying the images. "The last time I saw him when he was Clem was that day that we presented our case to the Senate. When all turned to hell, we went out and got plastered. I didn't see him for a few days after that. Then he showed up on my doorstep. He was . . . different, scary. He told me something about a-a revolution. He scared me. I told him to come back when he wasn't drunk. I-I wasn't quite sure if he was drunk though. He didn't slur his words . . . but he was rambling like a lunatic." Gem felt her heart squeeze painfully, and she bit out the last few words. "I never saw him again."  
  
Sabé let out a deep breath. "Do you remember what he said exactly? About the revolution?"  
  
Gem shook her head, tears stinging at her eyes. "No. I was so upset . . . I didn't pay attention to him. I was terrified."  
  
"Would you say he went under a complete personalitiy change?" Sabé continued.  
  
Gem thought about it, and before she knew it she was nodding. "Clem was the sweetest man I've ever met. He didn't have a violent bone in his body."  
  
"Was he violent to you then?"  
  
Gem was reluctant. "N-No, not really. He was . . . forceful. Animated about what he had to say. He got a little upset when I didn't want to join him."  
  
"Would you mind if we came again, Mistress Yrrk? I'm not sure that we're finished with you yet, but you've given us enough information for the moment," Sabé said.  
  
Gem nodded. "Please. I'll do anything to help you find him. Even if he gets sent to jail. I just want to know that he's alive."  
  
Sabé reached out with a warm hand, and Gem shook it. Sabé squeezed gently and smiled encouragingly. "We'll find him, Gemina. The team we've got going on this case is the best the Republic has to offer, in my opinion."  
  
"That's only because you're on it."  
  
"Shut up, Obi-Wan," Sabé said good-naturedly. She smiled once more at Gem. "I hope we get to talk again."  
  
"I hope so too," Gem said as she shut the door. She was surprised to realize that she meant it. She hadn't hoped to talk to anyone since Clem had disappeared. But Sabé was sincere. That was something Gem respected, what with the Republic's evolution into something sick and twisted; its leader a mass murder. Because Gem was certain that Palpatine was the cause of all her troubles. Maybe she *should* have joined that "revolution". Clem had talked about revenge. Revenge sounded really sweet at the moment. Especially since Gem was beginning to think that Clem was gone for good. If not dead, hiding out. And with a Jedi Knight and Palpatine's security on his tail, he might not be able to hide much longer.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Sabé was positively giddy as she and Obi-Wan climbed into the speeder they'd driven to the building Gemina Yrrk's apartment was in.  
  
"What is it?" Obi-Wan asked as he started the speeder and began to tie into traffic. "I can tell you're excited about something."  
  
"I think I know what happened," Sabé said, running it over in her mind again, looking for any holes. "There's a group that are known as the "Seperatists". They have wild theories about the Senate, and they want to start a new Republic. Not many know about them of course -- mostly only the Senate security."  
  
"If you think that the Seperatists are behind this, then what about Clemens Lorcan?" Obi-Wan asked.  
  
"That's just it. Did you hear what Gemina was saying? He went under a complete personality change in a matter of days. What if the Seperatists learned of what happened to Lorcan and decided to pounce on him -- recognizing that with his defeat in the Senate he'd be an easy target for them to brainwash into joining them. That would explain his rambling about a revolution."  
  
"It does make sense," Obi-Wan said, deep in thought. "Do you have any information on these Seperatists?"  
  
"It's miniscule. We're aware of them though. We're not sure of any particular person that's in this group; we don't know that much about them. They've never done anything as serious as an assassination attempt before, though there were rumors that they might try. We thought that they were just a cult trying to convince others to break away from the Republic."  
  
"They're more of a threat though." There was a small silence while both in the speeder were kept to their own thoughts. Finally, Obi-Wan broke that silence. "What do you think about what Gemina Yrrk said?"  
  
"About somebody destroying their information?"  
  
Obi-Wan nodded.  
  
Sabé sighed and leaned back in the seat. "I honestly don't know. It seems completely irrational, but I don't think she was lying."  
  
"Maybe it's something she created in her mind."  
  
"Or maybe the Seperatists were behind this too. I wouldn't put warping people's minds past them. It's a favorite pastime of theirs."  
  
"Do you think Lorcan is still alive?" Obi-Wan asked.  
  
Sabé shook her head. "No. He couldn't be dead. If you noticed, Gemina was disappointed when she opened the door and saw us. That makes me think she was hoping that it was Clemens. Then from various bits of conversation, the look in her eyes . . . she still thinks he's alive, Obi-Wan, and if she does then he has to be."  
  
"Why are you so sure?"  
  
"Because if you had any ounce of sense at all, you'd realize that Gemina Yrrk was in love with her partner. If he was dead, she would know and give up hope."  
  
"She would know if he was dead?" Obi-Wan asked doubtfully.  
  
Sabé blushed a little bit. She knew for a fact how it worked. If anything had happened to Obi-Wan, she would have known about it. Somehow or other. "Maybe it's not like the Force bond between us, but that doesn't mean that it's not similar."  
  
Obi-Wan snapped his head around to look at her, then he turned back to traffic quickly. "Oh?"  
  
"She would know, Obi-Wan. Trust me."  
  
"I do," Obi-Wan said softly. He made a sudden turn, and Sabé realized that they were in front of the Senate building. "What time is the Senate meeting over?"  
  
Sabé looked at the chrono in the speeder. "In an hour."  
  
"Then we'll get as much information as we can on these Seperatists and settle down in Palpatine's office to look them over until he gets back."  
  
"Isn't Anakin back at your apartment?"  
  
"Sithspawn. I forgot about him. We'll contact him via comm unit."  
  
Sabé reached forward and flipped a switch. She typed in a few things on a number pad that had risen out of the side of the car.  
  
"My God. I've never seen a speeder this . . . prestigious," Obi-Wan said in amazement as a second passed, then the screen that was by the wheel began to turn fuzzy, then into the shape of Anakin's face.  
  
"Hello?" Anakin asked, his voice cautious.  
  
"Anakin," Obi-Wan greeted.  
  
"Master! Did you find anything?"  
  
"We found out a lot. Listen, get on the holonet and look up the term "Seperatists". I don't care how many things you have to hack into, use your Jedi senses if you want to."  
  
"Really?" Anakin looked extremely eager.  
  
"Really. Sabé and I are going to use our own resources to look up information on this cult. We think that Lorcan was brainwashed by them."  
  
"Okay. When are you coming back?"  
  
"When Roth and Beula get back. We're going to try and sneak out of escorting Palpatine back so that we can get a head start on this. It should be in a standard hour or two. Maybe three."  
  
"All right then. Take care of yourself."  
  
"You know I will, Ani. May the Force be with you."  
  
"Ditto."  
  
Obi-Wan flipped the switch that Sabé had played with before, and the number pad disappeared into a secret compartment. He looked over at Sabé to see that she was smiling at him. "What?"  
  
"You're just so adorable when you talk to Anakin," Sabé said simply as she climbed out of the speeder and onto the walkway in front of the Senate building.  
  
"I thought I was always adorable," Obi-Wan said, following her and locking the speeder up behind him. They stepped into the building, and a blast of cool air hit them.  
  
"Then you're *particularly* adorable when you talk to Anakin," Sabé said, correcting herself. They walked to an elevator, and Sabé pressed the up key. "Do you want to stop by the library first or leave that for Roth?"  
  
"We'll let them do the easy work. What other options have we?"  
  
"I can get Bridget -- Palpatine's secretary -- to pull up information on her computer. She has access to anything and everything. Then we can go through Palpatine's personal files."  
  
"Personal files? I'm intrigued."  
  
"You should be. He never lets anyone look at them. I figure this is a special occasion though," Sabé said.  
  
"Going against your boss' orders?" Obi-Wan tsked as they stepped into an empty elevator. "I never thought you'd have it in you, Ms. Yéré."  
  
"There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Mr. Kenobi," Sabé said as she pressed the number of the floor they were going to. Her heart was doing a silly fluttery number. She'd never really flirted before, but it always came naturally with Obi-Wan.  
  
"I intend to find each and every one of those things out," Obi-Wan told her, his voice low and his eyes intense.  
  
Sabé's breath caught in her throat. "I've missed you."  
  
"I missed you too," Obi-Wan whispered.  
  
"Obi-Wan . . . do you remember what you said to me before you left Naboo?" Sabé asked daringly.  
  
"I might recall saying something about lo--"  
  
There was a ding, and the doors to the elevator slung open. Sabé and Obi- Wan were distracted, and when Sabé tried to catch Obi-Wan's eyes again, the moment was gone. She sighed wearily and left the elevator, Obi-Wan by her side. There was an awkward silence that seemed to become more pressing with each second. Sabé wanted him to finish his sentence, but she was too shy and afraid of his answer to ask again. It had taken all of her guts to ask it the first time. Eventually, the hallway gave way to a doorway, and Sabé automatically typed in the security code to get in. Obi-Wan stepped in behind her, and she shut the doors.  
  
"Sabé!"  
  
Sabé recognized the voice, and she saw that Phira Quintessa was sitting down behind the desk, talking to Bridget. "Hi, Phira. How have you been?"  
  
"Horrible. I can't stop worrying . . ."  
  
"I can understand," Sabé said sympathetically. "We're on it though, and we're very close to finding the man who tried to kill the Chancellor."  
  
"You know who it is then?"  
  
"We're about ninety nine percent sure," Sabé said. She looked to Bridget. "Actually, we came to get some information. Can you look up 'Seperatists'?"  
  
Bridget nodded and spun her chair around to begin working at her computer.  
  
"Who's this?" Phira asked, eyeing Obi-Wan.  
  
"Him? He's just part of the scenery. Think we should get a new interior decorater?" Obi-Wan nudged her playfully in the back, and she laughed, turning around to look at him. She turned back to Phira. "This is Obi-Wan Kenobi. You might have heard of him. He's one of the Jedi who are helping me with this case."  
  
Phira's eyes widened and her eyebrows went halfway up her forehead. "Is it so serious that you need Obi-Wan Kenobi on the case?" she asked breathlessy, worry lacing her words.  
  
"No, no," Sabé assured her. "Palpatine asked for him specifically because he knows that Obi-Wan is a good Jedi Knight. He wants this case closed as soon as possible. Don't worry, Phira, Palpatine's security is tightened. Nothing will be able to get to him now."  
  
Phira nodded acceptingly, but her eyes still looked worried. "If you say so."  
  
"I do, Phira. Would I ever lie to you?" Sabé asked gently.  
  
Phira shook her head. "Of course not. I'm sorry for acting so worried. It's just . . ."  
  
"I know exactly how you feel," Sabé said. An image of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon facing the Sith demon flashed through her mind. She turned her head to look at Obi-Wan, just to reassure herself that he was okay. "Exactly how you feel," she repeated. Obi-Wan caught her gaze, but she was too shy to keep it. She looked away quickly.  
  
Phira was looking at Obi-Wan with more interest now, and Sabé knew that she had been stupid and let Phira know there was something going on there. Or, at least, there had been. She and Obi-Wan had almost had a moment in the elevator, but the Fates obviously wanted them to wait before discussing their relationship.  
  
"All right. I have all of the information I could obtain," Bridget said. She pulled out a data disk from a small box on her right and put in the computer to download the information. "There's not very much, mind you. Just word of mouth."  
  
"I've heard the word of mouth. Is there anything else?"  
  
"No." Bridget shook her head.  
  
Sabé clicked her tongue in annoyance. She sighed reluctantly. "Well, it's better than nothing. Isn't there any factual information on them?"  
  
"There would be in Dantius's files," Phira put in. "He's talked about the Seperatists before. He takes them very seriously."  
  
Sabé felt something nudging on the edge of her mind, and something akin to fear began to build. If Palpatine took them seriously, then that meant that they were a threat. A real threat. Of course, attempting to assassinate the Supreme Chancellor had made this obvious already, but it seemed more real to Sabé now. "Where can we find these files?"  
  
"No one is allowed to see them but him," Phira said. "You'll have to ask him when he gets back."  
  
Sabé looked at the chronometer on the wall and clicked her tongue. She looked to Obi-Wan. "We have too much time on our hands."  
  
Obi-Wan smiled at her. "I'm open to dinner."  
  
Sabé rolled her eyes. "I'm not hungry."  
  
"Really?" Obi-Wan licked his lips slightly, keeping her gaze locked to his own. "I'm actually very hungry."  
  
Sabé felt adrenaline rush through her veins at the possessive sound in his voice. She was going to keep her cool though. "Why don't you go out to eat by yourself?"  
  
"Nope." Obi-Wan shook his head, smiling. "I'd prefer it if you were there."  
  
Sabé decided that it was the time to start ignoring Obi-Wan, so she turned around to ask Bridget one last question. "Do you have any insider's information on Senator Clemens Lorcan, the Lark system, or both?"  
  
Bridget began searching again. "Hold on a sec, I'll put it on another disk for you."  
  
"Thanks. Phira, have you eaten dinner yet?"  
  
"No. I can't eat anymore. I can't eat, and I can't sleep. I'm just so worried that something will happen to Dantius."  
  
"You need to eat, honey. You need your strength."  
  
"I'm too frail already, I know it. Besides, I could use dropping a pound or two."  
  
"Phira . . ." Sabé said in a warning tone.  
  
"What?" Phira asked.  
  
"Let's go out to dinner, and when we come back the Chancellor will be here. Then you can go home and get some sleep. Does that sound okay?"  
  
Phira considered it heavily. Finally, reluctantly, she nodded. "I guess so."  
  
"Okay. Bridget, do you want me to bring you back something?"  
  
"I could do with anything right now. I'm famished."  
  
"We'll be sure to hurry then. If you don't mind, get as much information on the three keywords I gave you as you can."  
  
"Don't worry, I can handle it."  
  
"I know you can. Come on, Phira. We're going to go to someplace you've never been before. Someplace greasy."  
  
Phira wrinkled her eyebrows but walked around the desk. "Are you sure that's healthy?"  
  
"Of course not, but it's good," Sabé said, pushing Phira ahead of her. She looked up at Obi-Wan and whispered so that Phira couldn't hear, "You don't mind do you?"  
  
"No. I like greasy food," Obi-Wan said, smiling.  
  
"Don't say anything to worry Phira either. She's . . . sensitive."  
  
"I noticed."  
  
"Okay, let's go then. See you, Bridget."  
  
"Bye." 


	5. Chapter Five

Clem's apprehension began to drain away as he looked out the window of the space shuttle he was riding in. Coming closer and closer was the beautiful landscape of Lark -- his home planet. It still looked as beautiful as ever, but Clem knew that beneath the beauty, the planet's sentients were dying. It was almost impossible to believe, but he'd had the mispleasure of seeing it first hand.  
  
With Gem.  
  
Clem felt a stinging sensation in the back of his eyes. He thought he'd trained himself not to think about the mess he was in, but little phrases were created in his mind before he could stop it.  
  
Truth be told, he missed Gem. Terribly. But he knew he couldn't go back to her. After he'd done that stupid thing, after he joined the Seperatists, he knew that he was a dead man walking. He wouldn't make Gem a dead woman walking by trying to speak to her, by asking her for help. She was already mad at him, furious, and he didn't think he could take her knowing what he'd done.  
  
After that fateful night, he'd been beaten pretty badly by the Seperatists. They didn't take failures, and Clem had, plainly put, screwed up. Chancellor Palpatine was still alive.  
  
When you really thought about it, which Clem had done, it wasn't his fault. Afterall, how was he supposed to know that that girl would shove Palpatine aside? She must have had some kind of sixth sense. He had been virtually undetected. They didn't suspect him, did they?  
  
He got a private med-droid to treat him, not wanting to risk being stuck in a hospital if they traced everything back to him. The med-droid wasn't a very modern model, and he didn't have enough money to buy a bacta tank, but after a day or so under its care, he was as good as new. Well . . . good enough to be able to manage a flight to Lark. He would heal completely in the prestigious palace.  
  
The first thing Clem did after he sent the med droid away was get a ride back to Lark. He had had a lot of time to think while he was waiting for his body to heal. The facts didn't add up -- none of them. But that didn't mean that they never would. That just mean that Clem didn't have enough facts. There was something about Lark that Palpatine wanted to keep a secret, something so important that he felt that he needed to completely obliterate the already unknown planet.  
  
That was why Clem was going home. Well . . . besides his needing to hide out and his homesickness. He was going to scour through every file on hand at the palace, because he knew that the King and Queen would allow him to. He had been best friends with Andy Fluharty since childhood -- they had grown up together. Clem's dad had been senator at the time, and Andy's was the king. Besides that, Andy wouldn't trust the Senate as far as he could throw the whole damn building. Clem knew that Gem had to have explained everything. She was very thorough. Clem felt that stinging sensation again, and he shoved away all thoughts of Gem, the picture of her smiling face. His heart began to ache. He missed her terribly so.  
  
Clem felt the bump in his seat that indicated the ship was shifting into atmosphere. Either the ship was faster than he thought, or he'd been lost in his own thoughts for longer than he'd meant to. Either way, the city of Gikaeo was fastly approaching.  
  
Not more than ten standard minutes later, the flight attendent was informing the passengers that they had landed. Clem got up from his grungy seat and followed the crowd of people hurrying to get out of the ship. He was closer to vomiting than he'd ever been before. He hadn't thought of himself as snotty, but he had grown up well-off. Taking a poor ship full of the lower class was almost more than he could take. It was over though, and he was safe. He knew this wasn't completely true, but somehow being back home made everything seem perfect again. Things would be okay; he was sure of it.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Phira had only eaten a third of her plate, but that was more than Sabé had expected. Phira lived in a world where she thought that she was overweight and ugly. Palpatine's repeated rejection of her didn't help the twisted image she had of herself either. Phira got even worse whenever something important was happening with Palptine. She didn't have much of a life, so she spent hers worrying over Palpatine's.  
  
"Thank you," Phira said warmly as they stepped out of the elevator and began down the hallway to Palpatine's office. "I didn't realize I was so hungry."  
  
"It was my pleasure, Phira. I always enjoy talking with you," Sabé said sincerely, hoping the compliment might boost Phira's self-esteem a little bit.  
  
"As do I," Obi-Wan added in. Sabé sent him a grateful look. "I don't get out much, so it's nice to know that there are people besides the Jedi."  
  
Phira laughed politely. "I know what you mean. Until Sabé came to work for Dantius, I only had Bridget to talk to. She's a sweet girl, but having two best friends is much better than one."  
  
"I can understand that," Obi-Wan said.  
  
Sabé typed in the security code on the number pad, and the doors opened automatically. Inside of the waiting room, Roth and Beula were sitting down, looking nervous.  
  
"You're back!" Beula exclaimed. "What 'till we tell you about our night."  
  
"What happened?" Phira demanded.  
  
Beula looked at the unfamiliar petite woman and smiled. "Hello. I'm Beula Guiseppa."  
  
"This is Phira Quintessa," Sabé introduced. "Did anything violent happen, Beula?"  
  
"Huh? No. We just got to know that Zoilo fellow a little better. Not the brightest star in the sky. Nor the friendliest either."  
  
Phira sighed in relief. "Why don't you go into his office?" Sabé suggested. Phira nodded, and Sabé opened the door for her. Once Phira was out of the way, Sabé leaned over the counter to look at Bridget. "Did you copy those files for me?"  
  
Bridget handed Sabé a disk, throwing in a bright smile. "Everything I could possibly find. I even found some more information on these Seperatists. You might want to try going to security head quarters and seeing if they have any information."  
  
"Good idea. Thanks," Sabé said. "We're going to head back to the Jedi's apartment to do a little reasearching. Do you need anything?"  
  
"Did you get me something to eat?"  
  
"Oh, right." Sabé turned around and took a container from Obi-Wan's hands. She held it over the counter, and Bridget took it thankfully. "Will Palptine be all right, or does he need one of us to stay back and escort him back to his apartment?"  
  
"I think he's okay. He was in a good mood when he came in."  
  
"Good. I was worried about Phira."  
  
"In the mood he was in, they might not be out for awhile."  
  
"Where's Zoilo?"  
  
"He's parking their speeder. They only just got back."  
  
"Can you take care of him until Zoilo comes up here?"  
  
"You know I can. See you tomorrow, Sabé."  
  
"Bye," Sabé said. She turned and strode out of the room, pausing only to type in the security code. She heard shuffling that indicated the Jedi were following her.  
  
"Did you guys find anything interesting?" Roth asked as they waited for an elevator to come.  
  
"Nope. Just a prime suspect," Sabé said casually.  
  
"Don't forget a theory on how this suspect came to the assassination attempt," Obi-Wan added.  
  
"Are you serious?" Roth demanded, his jaw literally dropping.  
  
Sabé couldn't resist smiling as a ding indicated that the elevator had arrived. The doors swished open, and all four of them stepped inside. Sabé hit the ground floor button. "We went to visit Gemina Yrrk, as you know."  
  
"What happened?" Roth asked eagerly.  
  
"From various information she told us, we have a theory as to what happened. After Lorcan came back from his defeat at the Senate, he was approached by a group known in the Senate as the 'Seperatists'. They want to overthrow the Republic, say that it's contaminated. They figured that Lorcan would be a good person to brainwash since he was already miserable. They got him to do their dirty work, it didn't work out, and Lorcan disappeared."  
  
"What makes you think it was the Seperatists? Couldn't he have planned this on his own?" Beula asked, the voice of reasoning.  
  
"You would think so, but Yrrk said that she didn't see him for a few days after the day they presented their case to the Senate. Then he showed up at her apartment, and it was as if he'd undergone a complete personality change. He started ranting to her about a revolution. It sounds like Seperatist talk to me."  
  
The elevator stopped, and the four left the small, carpeted room, heading towards the front where Sabé had parked the speeder.  
  
"Where do we go from here?" Roth asked.  
  
Sabé shrugged. "To be honest -- I don't really know. I asked Bridget to get information for us on Lorcan, Lark, and Seperatists, but I don't know if it's going to help any. I want to contact Gemina Yrrk again and ask if she knows where Lorcan might go if he's in trouble."  
  
"What if he's dead? What if the Seperatists got mad that he failed and decided to make him pay?" Beula asked logically.  
  
"Sabé insists that Yrrk wouldn't be so insistant that he's alive if he was dead. She says that Yrrk would be able to detect it," Obi-Wan explained, a slight doubt lingering in his voice. "Something about being in love."  
  
"And we can go on a woman's instincts?" Roth asked, the same doubt in his voice but more scornful.  
  
Sabé pushed him, hard, and he went flying out the doors of the Senate building, landing on the pavement outside.  
  
"What the hell was that for?" Roth demanded, jumping up and brushing his tunic off as though he was mortally wounded.  
  
"For being sexist," Sabé said simply. "When I'm right, I'm right."  
  
"She's right," Obi-Wan put in. "This girl has got instincts you can't imagine."  
  
"That reminds me," Roth said as they climbed into the speeder. "I was meaning to ask you about this 'special way with people' Palpatine mentioned. Are you a physcic?"  
  
Sabé snorted. "Not nearly as exotic as that."  
  
"Just drop it, Roth," Obi-Wan said sharply, not even turning around to look at his friend as he started the speeder.  
  
"Now you're making me think it's something important, and I just want to find out even more," Roth said.  
  
"Don't go asking around, and don't mention it to anyone," Obi-Wan warned in a low voice, turning around briefly to show Roth that he meant business.  
  
Roth raised his arms in defeat. "Okay, okay. Don't go all Sith Lord on me, Kenobi."  
  
"Where's Anakin?" Beula asked as an attempt to change the subject.  
  
"He's still at the apartment," Obi-Wan answered. "I told him he could hack through the holonet in search of information. Jedi senses and all."  
  
"Desperate, are you?" Roth teased.  
  
"Pretty much. We've all the information that we need, but we have to get proof. We need to find this Lorcan guy."  
  
"What about his girlfriend -- would she know where he is?"  
  
Sabé bit her lip. "I don't think so. She seemed pretty desperate to find out where he was."  
  
"Could it have been an act?" Beula asked.  
  
Sabé considered it a moment, then shook her head. "No. That just doesn't feel right."  
  
Sabé turned her eyes back to traffic as Obi-Wan landed in front of the building where their apartments were. "Let's go inside and see what Anakin has found out. Then we'll consider seeing Gemina Yrrk again. She might not know exactly where he is, but maybe she knows where he would go if he were hiding out."  
  
* * * * *  
  
Getting off of the ship had been relatively easy, and Clem had been met by an unobtrusive man who's body language told that he was working for the King and Queen, there to take him to the palace. Clem had been wary of telling Andy and Laura that he was arriving at first, but then he decided that it would be easier to get into the palace that way.  
  
The man who had met him brought him to a land speeder, and they took off towards the palace. They got through security easily, the man just flashed his badge, and it didn't take long for them to stop at the fountain in front of the palace. Laura and Andy were waiting there.  
  
"Are you okay?" Laura asked immediately after Clem stepped out of the speeder. "Where's Gem?"  
  
Clem felt that squeezing sensation, but he pushed it away faster than before. "She's back on Coruscant. She doesn't know I'm here." Clem looked around pointedly. "Could we talk somewhere more private?"  
  
Andy and Laura agreed and, surrounded heavily by security guards, led Clem into the palace and up a few floors until they reached Andy's office.  
  
Clem sat down in a couch in the center of the room, and the King and Queen sat across from him. He went into detail the accounts of what had happened on Coruscant, not holding anything back.  
  
"Did Gem fill you in on the switched data disks?"  
  
Andy nodded. "She told us that she thought the Chancellor did this. Do you think it's true?"  
  
"I know it's true. I just have to get the proof to back up my theory. That's why I'm here. I need to use the Royal library. Something about Lark needed to be quieted, and I want to know what that was," Clem said with conviction.  
  
Laura scoffed. "That's perfectly acceptable, but Clem! Gem told us that you disappeared after the Senate meeting. Now you show up a month later without an explanation?"  
  
Clem looked down at his hands, twiddling them, looking for a distraction from his shame. "You heard about the attempted assassination on Palpatine's life, of course."  
  
"Yes," Andy and Laura said in unison.  
  
Clem looked up guiltily. Laura gasped and clutched a hand to her heart. Andy looked disbelieving. "That was you? That couldn't have been you."  
  
"It was," Clem said bitterly. "It was a stupid, horrible mistake."  
  
"Well, duh!" Laura put in.  
  
Clem gave her a look, then continued. "After the Senate disaster, Gem and I went out drinking. When we got back to our apartments, I found that mine was occupied. There's a group of people -- a cult -- who call themselves the 'Seperatists'. They told me that Palpatine had done this before, that I had a chance to keep it from happening again."  
  
"You were brainwashed?" Laura asked bluntly.  
  
"Misguided," Clem corrected. He sighed. "Look, I got away, didn't I? They don't know that it's me. I came here to get answers. Will you help me?"  
  
Andy nodded. "Of course, Clem. You know you're always welcome here. Wanted criminal or not."  
  
Clem managed to crack a smile, but he didn't feel it on the inside. All he felt was sad and bitter. But he wouldn't let that keep him from revenge. He would find out what Palpatine was hiding, and he would throw it in the Chancellor's face. He would expose Palpatine for what he really was.  
  
* * * * *  
  
After Clem had had a proper meal and been sent to a comfortable room, Laura returned to her husband's office where he was working. He was working through the planet's budget, trying to find a way to be able to either afford medical help or to send all of the healthy off planet to reside somwhere else. Laura knew that it was important -- it hurt her just as much as her husband to watch her people deteriorate so painfully -- but she felt that she was needed to help in Clem's problems.  
  
"What do we do if Clem becomes a prime suspect in the investigation the Senate is sure to be holding?" Laura asked abrubtly as she stepped into the room, motioning for her personal body guard to stay just outside.  
  
Andy looked up, startled, and took off his reading glasses. He set down a holoviewer he'd been looking at and began to rub furiously at his temples. "Clem is our friend. I won't sell him out."  
  
"I know that," Laura said, rolling her eyes. "I feel the same exact way. What I'm talking about is, what if they come here?"  
  
"Then they'll see the mess our planet is in. They won't be able to write it off so easily anymore. If what Clem says about Palpatine is true, I don't think that he would agree to sending an investigation team after Clem here."  
  
Laura nodded, surprised as she always was at her husband's logic. She always wondered why she hadn't been the one to think of the things he said. With that topic cleared, she moved on to the next one. "I want to tell Gem that he's here."  
  
Andy looked up sharply. "Laura . . ."  
  
"No, Andy, let me do this," Laura said, pleading with her eyes. "Gem is my friend, and I feel as if I'm betraying her by not telling her that Clem is safe. She needs to know. She's a mess right now, Andy, you know, and maybe this will help her to get back together."  
  
Andy looked reluctant as he considered the situation. Finally, he nodded, and gestured for her to use his comm unit. Laura practically leaped at her husband and gave him a hard kiss on the mouth. "Thank you," she said breathlessly, catching his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her. "I knew I loved you for a reason."  
  
" *A* reason?"  
  
"Okay, maybe there are many reasons," Laura admitted. She kissed him again, and he released her. She sat down on the comfortable chair in front of his desk and began working on the comm unit, dialing up Gem's frequency.  
  
It took a while for it to work, and Laura began to think it was broken, but suddenly the screen faded away to Gem's face, looking worried and hopeful at the same time. Her face fell when she recognized Laura, but she offered a murmur of hello.  
  
"Gem, I have to tell you something," Laura said. The gravity of her voice must have gotten to Gem, because the woman suddenly looked attentive.  
  
"What is it?" she asked breathlessly.  
  
"It's about Clem--"  
  
"Tell me," Gem commanded, her voice more level and harsher than before. Her chin wavered slightly. "Is he . . .?"  
  
"Dead? Well, if so, I don't know why I gave him the Royal guest bedroom to sleep in," Laura said, attempting to keep the conversation light-toned.  
  
Gem's stature changed so drastically that Laura thought it might be magic. Gem had been stiff with pain before, her face in a worried scowl. Suddenly, Laura saw the girl that she had grown up with. Gem's brown eyes literally lit up with happiness, and as she sighed with relief, the stiffness left her shoulders, and she sagged, obviously leaning forward on whatever she had her comm unit on. A hint of a smile was on her face, but there was a little disbelief too.  
  
"He's there?" she asked, her voice sounding choked. "Please, let me talk to him. I need to see him."  
  
"He's asleep," Laura said softly, feeling horrible for saying so. "I'll tell him to comm you tomorrow though if you want me to."  
  
"I have to get back," Gem said suddenly. "I don't care about the box at the Senate. The Senate has gone to hell anyway, and our planet won't last much longer. I want to be with him. Oh, Laura, is he all right? Did he look sick? Did he say what happened?"  
  
Laura glanced at Andy out of the corner of her eye. He shrugged slightly as if to say he didn't care if she told Gem. Laura studied the picture of her friend on the comm screen, then began to fill in Gem on the details, telling her about Clem calling the day before, informing them that he would be arriving via immigrants shuttle the next day. She told her everything Clem told her, about the 'Seperatists' and what Clem was planning on doing at the Royal library.  
  
Gem looked relieved with each passing word, and she let out a deep breath when Laura was finished. "He's not . . . different, is he?" she asked suspiciously.  
  
"The same Clem we grew up with," Laura answered, wondering what Gem meant by the question but deciding it didn't seem like a good idea to ask about it.  
  
"Oh, thank the maker," Gem said. "Please, let me come. I'll leave tomorrow if you let me. No, screw that. I'm coming with or without your permission. I've been worried sick. Did he say why he didn't come back to me?"  
  
"He didn't, but I'm sure that it was to keep you safe. Which reminds me, have they started an investigation yet? Are they suspicious of Clem?"  
  
Gem's eyes grew wide. "A Jedi Knight and a security guard came over earlier. They were asking about Clem."  
  
"What did you tell them?" Laura demanded.  
  
"I told them everything that I knew, which was nothing at the time. They told me Clem was a suspect for the assassination; that's why I wasn't so shocked when you told me what he'd done."  
  
Laura nodded. "That would explain it. Do you think they'll come by again?"  
  
"Who cares? I'm getting a ticket out of here asap. I'm dying being seperated from my people. I feel like I'm cheating death, somehow."  
  
Laura felt sympathetic. "I know what you mean," she said quietly.  
  
"Don't tell Clem I'm coming. I want to surprise him. Give him a piece of my mind," Gem said.  
  
"We won't," Laura promised. "Good bye, Gem. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."  
  
"Tomorrow," Gem agreed just before the comm flickered out.  
  
"You shouldn't have done that," Andy said quietly after a moment where Laura stared at the blank screen, thinking back over the conversation.  
  
"Done what?" Laura asked absently.  
  
"Told her that she could come here. We have a box at the Senate that we have to fill. I'm not sure what will happen if our Senators just don't show up. It might even lead the investigation closer to Clem," Andy explained.  
  
Laura turned to look at Andy, a hard expression on her face. "Like Gem said, screw the Senate. And they already suspect Clem. They're good, especially if they've got a Jedi on the team. Let Gem come and get a chance to be with Clem a little while." Laura smiled softly. "Besides, do you think I could have stopped her?"  
  
Andy smiled right back then leaned on the two arms of the chair Laura had swung around to face him. He leaned down and kissed her softly. "No, dear. That's something not even you can accomplish." 


	6. Chapter Six

As promised, Obi-Wan showed up at Sabé's door that evening; everyone had been asleep in his apartment, so it had been easy to sneak out. It didn't take more than a split second for Sabé to open the door, and Obi-Wan had the delighted suspicion that she had been waiting for him. From the look on her face, he knew that she was as eager as he was to catch up. Though they had had plenty of chances in the past two days, an unspoken agreement had them waiting until they were alone, really alone, and free to spend as much time together as possible.  
  
"I made some caff, do you want any?" Sabé asked as she motioned Obi-Wan into her apartment.  
  
"Sounds good," Obi-Wan said politely when, in all reality, he just wanted to spend time with Sabé. He decided that the drink would be a way to "break the ice".  
  
Sabé's apartment was in the same design as the one he and the other Jedi were residing in, but she had it decorated differently. It seemed homely and had a lot of Nubian flare to it. He noticed she had quite a few holos of Padmé and the rest of the handmaidens. It flickered across his consciousness whether to tell Anakin about it or not.  
  
Obi-Wan sat at the breakfast bar, and she poured him a steaming mug of the thick liquid. He took a sip, but he was mostly concentrating on her. She leaned forward across the counter so that they were eye-to-eye. "Hi," she said softly.  
  
Though it was one small word, it made Obi-Wan feel more at ease. Before he could stop himself, he was blurting out everything that came to his mind. "I missed you so much . . . the only thing that I had to hold onto was that I just *knew* someday we'd be together again."  
  
Sabé looked startled and pleased at the same time. "Ditto," she said simply. "And a thousand times over. I've been watching you on the holonets. When you took on Anakin as an apprentice."  
  
"How long have you been living on Coruscant?"  
  
"A few months."  
  
"Then why didn't you come to see me before?" Obi-Wan asked softly, keeping his eyes low, lacking the courage to meet hers.  
  
When Sabé replied, her voice was laced with regret and apology. "I was so busy when I first started working for Palpatine, and I wasn't even sure you were on-planet. Then when I found out you were, I had to gather the courage to contact you. I thought that . . . maybe you didn't remember me. When that courage was gathered, you were off-planet again. I didn't hear about you until Palpatine requested your presence to the Jedi Council."  
  
Obi-Wan heard her words, but only one sentence stood out. He met her eyes boldly. "How could I ever forget you?"  
  
Sabé's eyes flared. "I don't know," she whispered. She shrugged. "I wasn't sure if I meant as much to you as you did . . do . . . to me."  
  
"All that and more," Obi-Wan said honestly. "Do you remember what I said to you during our last conversation on Naboo?"  
  
"Every word," Sabé said solemnly.  
  
"I meant it," Obi-Wan said seriously. "I still mean it today."  
  
A brilliant smile lit up Sabé's face. "Really?" she asked, barely able to believe what was happening to her.  
  
"Really," Obi-Wan confirmed. He leaned across the counter and caught her lips in swift kiss. The momentary joining was sweet and fed their souls with pure happiness. It was a kiss made of three years of longing, of passion and renewed hope.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Not too long after that kiss, the two lovers could be found sitting on Sabé's couch, reminiscing about the past, catching up on the years they missed.  
  
"Do you remember when Panaka caught us in your quarters on the Nubian?" Sabé asked, a burst of laughter lacing her words. "I'll never forget the look on his face!"  
  
Obi-Wan started laughing too. "Well, can you imagine someone like him catching his prize handmaiden pinned beneath the dashing, roguish Jedi?"  
  
"Dashing?" Sabé teased. She shrugged. "Well, if the boot fits."  
  
"Of course I was dashing," Obi-Wan said, not the least bit miffed. "You couldn't resist me."  
  
"I think it was a mutual thing," Sabé said dryly.  
  
"Perhaps," Obi-Wan admitted. "Do you still have the lightsaber I gave you?"  
  
"Of course," Sabé said unhesitatingly. "I keep it in a safe place. I've been using it to practice these past few years. If this came to that, I could whip your ass, Jedi-boy."  
  
"I'd like to see you try." Obi-Wan paused. "Do you remember what I said to you when I gave you that lightsaber?"  
  
"You said that the next time we met, you'd teach me how to make my own," Sabé said, the scene unfolding beneath her eyes.  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"Oh, Obi-Wan!" Sabé breathed, a wave of emotion hitting her hard in the breast. "You'd really do that? You won't get in trouble? You have the supplies? How--"  
  
Obi-Wan held up a hand. "Slow down a little bit. Yes, I'd do that. I thought you'd know by now, Sabé, I'd do anything for you. And you can't get in trouble for something the Council doesn't find out about."  
  
Sabé giggled. "Sneaky."  
  
"I do try," Obi-Wan said, making a funny face at her. They both sobered. "So you'd be interested if I offered?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And what if I added a bonus."  
  
"And what would that bonus be?"  
  
"Me, continuing to teach you. I think I've gotten better at it since I've had Anakin. You won't believe some of the exasperations I've had to go through with him." He flashed a smile at Sabé. "I don't think I'd mind so much if he was as hot as you."  
  
"Hmm . . . not everyone is as blessed as me, I guess," Sabé said, fluttering her eyelashes at him.  
  
"I should hope so! You drive the male population insane as it is, and there's only one of you right now," Obi-Wan said gravely.  
  
"I don't think it's the whole male population so much as just you, Obi- Wan," Sabé pointed out.  
  
"All the better," Obi-Wan whispered, leaning in to kiss her.  
  
Sabé let herself be subject to the passion. In a way, it was as if these were their very first kisses. Back on Tatooine, in the Queen's starship, lingering on their minds was the fact that what they were doing was wrong, that they were just humoring themselves. Now, Sabé felt a sense of freedom. She could kiss Obi-Wan as much as she wanted, and he would still be hers. As their pact had gone, they could finally be together. Nothing was in their way.  
  
* * * * *  
  
The next afternoon, Sabé and Obi-Wan could be found in a seperate building altogether, standing nervously in front of an apartment door belonging to none other than Gemina Yrrk. Sabé was the one who had been volunteered to do the knocking, and she was hesitating pointedly. She felt deeply for Gemina. The woman was grieving the loss of Lorcan and was a total mess. Sabé didn't want to waltz in and upset her life again. In two days nonetheless!  
  
Obi-Wan gave her a look, and she gave up. With another calming deep breath, Sabé pressed the buzzer at the door. It took a few moments, and Sabé was so exasperated that she was about to tell Obi-Wan they should come back another time, but finally the doors swished open to reveal a frazzled- looking Gemina Yrrk. Upon recognizing Obi-Wan and Sabé, Gemina's eyes widened frantically.  
  
"H-Hello," she stuttered, sounding as if she wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do.  
  
Sabé plunged right in. "I'm sorry to bother you again so soon, Mistress Yrrk, but after some research, we're certain that Clemens Lorcan is the culprit. We need to ask you a few questions. Do you know where he would go if in trouble? Anybody he was close with besides yourself?"  
  
Gemina's face paled considerably. "No," she said abruptly. "I-I don't . . . I mean, we weren't that close, Clem and I. Just business partners."  
  
Sabé's suspicion was aroused. She arched an eyebrow perfectly. "You're positive, Gemina?" The other woman nodded. Sabé gave her a smug look. "If that claim is so, then I'm afraid I must point out that it completely contradicts everything that you said yesterday. Now, do you want to tell me what's going on?"  
  
Gemina's eyes flickered behind her into the apartment. Sabé leaned forward in order to get a better look, but Gemina caught onto her and blocked her view pointedly. "Nothing is going on in the least. You're just imagining things. Good-bye." With that, the apartment door closed in the security officer and Jedi's faces.  
  
Sabé stood, dumbfounded, at the door, staring at it and trying to piece together what had just happened. After a moment, she turned around to face Obi-Wan in bewilderment. "Something's seriously wrong," she said gravely.  
  
"Or something is right," Obi-Wan said cryptically, scrutinizing the doors thoughtfully.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Think about it, Sabé. Yesterday that woman was miserable and depressed. I thought that the moment she recognized us she would pounce on us for information about Lorcan's whereabaouts."  
  
Sabé considered Obi-Wan's words, and it all clicked together. She felt stupid for not realizing it sooner. When she spoke, each word came out faster and more excited-sounding than the one before. "Unless she already knows where he is!" She snapped her fingers.  
  
"Exactly," Obi-Wan said matter-of-factly. "Did you get to see inside of her apartment?"  
  
Sabé shook her head. "No. She saw what I was doing and blocked my view."  
  
"Then she was trying to hide something," Obi-Wan concluded. "I got a decent look as to the contents of her apartment."  
  
"What did you see? Do you think Lorcan was in there?" Sabé demanded.  
  
"I can't be sure, but I don't think so. Her belongings were strewn everywhere," Obi-Wan said, obviously hinting at something.  
  
"Do you think she was robbed? Or attacked? Maybe Lorcan came back--"  
  
Obi-Wan interrupted her gently. "It looked like she was . . . packing."  
  
"She was packing and didn't ask about Lorcan, whom she was obsessed with finding yesterday," Sabé said aloud. She smirked. "And what do *you* think happened?"  
  
Obi-Wan smiled. "I had it figured out five minutes ago."  
  
"Mr. Hot-Shot Jedi, huh?" Sabé rolled her eyes good-naturedly, then turned serious again. "What are we going to do about this?"  
  
Obi-Wan considered before speaking. "You work in the Supreme Chancellor's security, so I'm going to assume that you can obtain just about any information you want to."  
  
"You're assuming correctly. We'll contact the shuttle lines and ask about any flights going to the Lark system."  
  
"What makes you think that Lorcan would go to his homeworld when he's being hunted? I got the picture that he was a bit more intelligent than to be so obvious."  
  
"It's my intuition," Sabé replied. "If you were in trouble, where would you go?"  
  
Obi-Wan smiled crookedly at her. "The Jedi Temple."  
  
"You see? I'm always right," Sabé boasted, starting to walk back to the elevator.  
  
Obi-Wan followed her. When they got into the elevator, he put a hand on her upper arm. She looked up into his soulful eyes, so intense at that moment. "I guess we make a pretty good team," he said softly, rubbing her arm softly.  
  
Sabé gulped and nodded. "It would appear so." She wasn't quite sure what to say next, but the Fates had already decided for her. The moment ended before either could grasp fully onto it, and Sabé turned away from him to request a floor number.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Obi-Wan and Sabé had split ways after talking to Gemina Yrrk. While Obi-Wan waited in the apartment, he and Anakin looking on the holonet for Lark shuttle times and such, Sabé visited the security head quarters to get copies of any frequencies in Gemina Yrrk's comm unit. Anakin had suggested it once they got back to the apartment, and Sabé had thought it a good idea. Beula and Roth were at a Senate meeting with the Chancellor and Zoilo.  
  
"If she took the latest flight, then she's already gone," Obi-Wan stated matter-of-factly to Anakin as they stared, dumbfounded at the screen before them. "What are we going to do now?"  
  
Anakin clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Are you an idiot, Master? Just because there are shuttles available to get to a system doesn't mean that's the only way to get there. If we're going to follow her, we just have to take a ship. We'll probably get there faster too."  
  
"How could we follow her? We're protecting the Chancellor, Ani."  
  
"There are four of us. I'm sure he can make do with two," Anakin said.  
  
Obi-Wan sighed and rubbed his temples wearily. "We'll have to talk about this later, when all of us are present. This thing just seems to get more complicated with every clue we uncover."  
  
"I know. Isn't it fun?" Anakin asked, grinning.  
  
Obi-Wan gave him a long look, then shook his head. "If only I were young again . . ."  
  
"Oh, come on, Master, you're not *that* old," Anakin said helpfully. "How many years apart are we? About fifteen? That's not that many years."  
  
"When you're twenty seven, you'll agree with me when I say yes it is."  
  
"I suppose I will, but that's a long way off," Anakin said. He stood up suddenly. "Are you hungry?"  
  
"No, but go ahead and make something to eat if you want," Obi-Wan said, realizing that there was nothing left to do but wait for Sabé, Roth, and Beula to get back. He was glad that Anakin had been with him looking at the information. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, and his brain didn't seem to be working properly. He was embarrassed that he hadn't thought of using a ship; Anakin must think he's losing mind.  
  
Noises began to come from the kitchen, and Obi-Wan looked back at the holonet in front of him. You could find out anything on the holonet. Especially if you had a Jedi's knack for hacking into things. Obi-Wan took a deep breath of revelation. It had been on his mind since he'd found out Sabé had prominent Jedi skills but hadn't been sent to the Temple.  
  
Why?  
  
He'd asked himself this many times, and he was sure that Sabé had as well. How was he going to begin though? He stared blankly at the screen before him. His mind was still fuzzy. He'd look on the 'net tomorrow, after a good night's sleep.  
  
Obi-Wan shut off the holoviewer and decided to sit at the breakfast bar and wait for Anakin to be done cooking. He realized that he hadn't had breakfast or lunch yet, and his stomach was in strong protest. He could use a Jedi technique to quiet the hunger spells, but he was too tired even for that. When he stumbled into a breakfast bar seat, he layed his head down on the counter, seeking refuge for a few moments.  
  
* * * * *  
  
It was relatively easy to get Yrrk's frequency with Sabé's position. Since she was in the same building, she stopped by Palpatine's office to see if Roth and Beula were there. She knew that they were at a milestone in the investigation, and it would be better if everyone was there. She knew Zoilo was supposedly on the case too, but the man wasn't that intelligent, and she had begun to think of the case as "hers and the Jedi".  
  
"Did the information I looked up for you help?" Bridget asked as soon as she recognized Sabé.  
  
"Immensely. Thank you, Bridget. What time will the Senate meeting adjourne?"  
  
"It shouldn't be too long from now. Why?"  
  
"I need the two Jedi. We have all of this information, and now we have to comb through it." Sabé propped herself up on the counter in front of Bridget, a bright smile on her face. "This is extremely exhilarating. The last time I actually liked being in security was back in my Naboo days. I guess I'm the kind of girl who needs some action."  
  
"Speaking of action . . ." Bridget trailed off meaningfully.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You and that Jedi you came in with yesterday seemed very . . . um . . . *chummy*," Bridget said, grinning at Sabé. "Since when do we keep secrets from each other?"  
  
"Oh! After I tell you, I have to remember to comm Padmé. She'll be dying to know," Sabé said reflectively, mentally trying to cram it into her brain to remember.  
  
"Dying to know about what?" Bridget prodded, looking even more eager now that she thought she was onto some gossip about one of her close friends.  
  
"Remember my Battle of Theed guy?" Sabé asked. "I think I've told you about him."  
  
"The one who promised to love you forever?" Bridget asked dreamily.  
  
"Yeah that one," Sabé said. She raised an eyebrow at Bridget, waiting for it to click together.  
  
"Oh!" Bridget said suddenly, her jaw dropping. "You mean to tell me that that Jedi Knight you were in with yesterday is him?"  
  
"Yes," Sabé said. She sighed. "He's just as wonderful as I remember, and things seem so much easer now. I was but a child when we last parted, and I feel so much older now."  
  
"Three years," Bridget reminded her.  
  
"I've done a lot of growing up!" Sabé laughed. She sobered. "He came over to my apartment last night."  
  
"Oh, do tell," Bridget said eagerly.  
  
"It was wonderful. At first it was really awkward, you know? But then we just started talking, and everything came out."  
  
"And then . . ."  
  
"And then he kissed me."  
  
"Sabé!" Bridget squealed. "That's amazing! What did you do?"  
  
"I kissed him back, you idiot. What else would I do? Then we started talking about . . . um . . . well, we were remembering and stuff, you know? Then we kissed again. And again. And again . . ." Sabé smiled to herself, the memories coming over her in a rush. "Oh, I love him just as much as I did before. Isn't it amazing how our feelings haven't changed after being apart for so long?"  
  
"Amazing," Bridget agreed dead-pannedly. "And completely unfair. I haven't yet met a guy like your dream man." Bridget sighed. "But I figure since you were lucky enough to find him, maybe I will be too."  
  
Sabé nodded encouragingly. "You will. And everything will be perfect. Just as it is for me now. I just know that everything is going to turn out right this time. Everything will fall into place for Obi-Wan and I."  
  
At that point, the doors opened automatically, and four very familiar faces walked through. Palpatine looked happy as he hummed along; Zoilo looked . . . placid, as always; the two Jedi trailing after them looked miserable and bored.  
  
Sabé jumped off of the counter and stood up straight. "Hello, Chancellor. How has your day been?"  
  
"It's been simply exquisite so far," Palpatine said pleasantly. "How have you and the Jedi been fairing?"  
  
Sabé thought about telling him everything, but some inner intuition stopped her. "We're coming along nicely. We have a lead, and we're trying to figure out where he disappeared to at the moment."  
  
"Such a sweet, intelligent girl," Palpatine murmured, looking at her with proud, ice blue eyes. It seemed that the only time he allowed a little bit of real, true emotion was when he looked at Sabé. The latter hadn't noticed this yet; to most people's eyes, Palpatine was always a feeling, compassionate man, and Sabé was no exception.  
  
"Would you pardon Jedi Sagiv and Guiseppa?" Sabé asked. "Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and I need them in some research we're planning out this evening."  
  
"No, that's fine, Sabé. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."  
  
"Thank you, Chancellor," Sabé said as he and Zoilo went into his office. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Good bye, Bridge, we've got to go."  
  
"All right. I'll see you tomorrow," Bridget said. Just as they were going out the door, she called out, "Does this Obi-Wan Kenobi fellow have a brother?"  
  
Sabé knew she was bright red when she slapped her hand on the security panel to shut the doors. She pretended not hear Bridget and kept on walking, ignoring the snickers she heard coming from Roth's direction.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Sabé, Roth, and Beula entered the Jedi's apartment to see Anakin and Obi- Wan sitting at the breakfast bar; the former eating something out of a bowl good-naturedly while the latter snored softly, head resting on his arm. Sabé resisted the urge to laugh.  
  
"You're back!" Anakin cried. Apparently the news wasn't important enough for him to get up and stop eating though. "We didn't uncover very much, but we do know that this Yrrk woman is already on her way there."  
  
"How long has he been asleep?" Roth asked, pointing at Obi-Wan.  
  
"I don't know. Long enough."  
  
"Why don't you wake him up, Sabé?" Roth asked slyly. "I'm sure he'd much rather see your face first thing than any of ours."  
  
Sabé scowled at him, fighting with herself over blushing. She poked Obi-Wan hard in the back, and he jerked awake. She smiled sweetly at him. "Rise and shine."  
  
Obi-Wan glared at her, but sat up straight. He swiveled around in his stool to see Beula and Roth in the main living room. "When did you get here?"  
  
"Just now," Sabé answered as she hoisted herself up on the counter beside Obi-Wan. She reached into her cloak and pulled out a data disk. "This has Ms. Gemina Yrrk's comm unit recordings from the past twenty four hours."  
  
"Why do you need that?" Roth asked. He kicked the floor. "That really blows. Beula and I are stuck baby-sitting the Chancellor while you guys get to go have fun."  
  
"I didn't think of it as fun," Obi-Wan said. "I'm beat."  
  
"Well that's what happens when you sneak out of the apartment in the dead of the night to visit your girlfriend," Roth snapped.  
  
Obi-Wan and Sabé both turned cherry red. "W-What do you mean?" Obi-Wan stuttered, trying his best to play cool.  
  
"Maybe not all of us were asleep last night," Roth answered simply. He sighed. "Just show us the disks, Sabé."  
  
Sabé nodded numbly. She jumped off of the counter and went to the comm unit by the door to stick in the disk. There was a bit of fuzzy reception on the screen but then it cleared to show the face of a young-looking woman with shoulder-length blonde hair, an oval-shaped face, and super model looks, all wrapped up in the type of headdress Padmé used to wear. The conversation began, and though you could hear Gemina, her face wasn't available to see.  
  
With each passing second, the occupants of the room were either smug or shocked. Most of it, they had already figured out, but there were quite a few things they didn't know. Lorcan seemed true in his beliefs of Chancellor Palpatine. Though Sabé knew the suggestions were made in conviction, she couldn't quite believe them. It seemed too far fetched.  
  
The disk ended, and she took it out again. She folded her arms across her stomach and turned around. "Well, now we know what's going on."  
  
"And we have proof," Roth added. "That oughta get Lorcan and maybe even that Laura woman into a trial. She knows about Lorcan and she's hiding him."  
  
"And we know what we need to do too," Anakin added. "We just don't know who's going to do it."  
  
"Beula and I will go," Roth said unhesitatingly. "If Obi-Wan or Anakin use their clearance codes, they'll be detected immediately, and it will be all over the holonews. We want to keep this quiet." Roth smiled and shrugged. "Besides, Beula and I want to have some fun once in a while."  
  
Obi-Wan let out a deep breath. "That does make the most sense," he admitted.  
  
"When will you leave?" Anakin asked, looking regretful. "You're coming back right."  
  
"Of course we're coming back."  
  
"You're sure?" Anakin asked, his brow wrinkled in worry.  
  
"Why wouldn't we come back?" Beula asked.  
  
Anakin shrugged. "Don't know."  
  
"We'd better get going as soon as possible," Roth said. He turned to Sabé. "Does the Senate have any ship we can use? It would be easier and faster and quieter instead of getting mine from the Temple. I can still use my clearance codes."  
  
"Yeah," Sabé said, feeling a little numb. Everything seemed to be happening so quickly.  
  
"Great. Come on, Beula, let's start packing."  
  
* * * * *  
  
AN: I just wanted to comment that I saw the mistake in chapter two that several pointed out. You know, the one where Sabé's hair was up, then two paragraphs later Obi-Wan commented on how it was down. I was laughing for quite awhile. It's better than the time I put 'peach offering' instead of 'peace offering' at least.  
  
I know I always say I'm sorry that I never update, but I have some news that might make you feel a little better. I have all but the last two chapters for this fic already written. It'll just be a matter of getting the chapters to Ketch, who looks over plot for me. Those of you who are concerned about The Right Path Again. There is only one last chapter for the entire fic. I've been going over it again and again because I want it to be perfect. I should be satisfied within the next few days. Let's hope. 


	7. Chapter Seven

"Isn't this ship wizard?" Beula asked, glowing, as she stepped into the cockpit.  
  
"Wizard?" Roth mocked her, smirking.  
  
Beula rolled her eyes. "It means cool. Anakin says it a lot."  
  
"Don't give in to peer pressure," Roth said, pretending to be stern.  
  
Beula snorted. "Coming from you of all people," she muttered.  
  
Roth pretended not to hear her. He didn't want to get into the things he did when he was fourteen. He looked around at the room. "This ship really is . . . um . . . wizard." He flashed her a quick smile. "I guess we should start working for the head of Senate more often."  
  
Beula shuddered. "This ship isn't enough to get me to work with Zoilo. I'm so glad we're leaving, actually. He creeped me out in the worst way."  
  
"Me too," Roth said softly, thinking to himself. What did that mean? If he and Beula both had a bad feeling about Zoilo, could it be the Force trying to tell them something? And, if Clemens and Yrrk were telling the truth, could it have been Zoilo who switched the disks? These questions and many more circulated Roth's brain, taunting him yet remaining elusive when he tried to grasp on the answers. He began to get frustrated.  
  
'Don't,' he told himself, using a Jedi calming influence on himself. 'You're finally getting something accomplished instead of baby-sitting for the Chancellor. Give Obi-Wan and Anakin the dirty work. They deserve to come off their high horses every once in awhile.'  
  
"Resentful are we?" Beula asked.  
  
"Don't read my thoughts," Roth snapped, irritated and embarrassed that she had picked up on his bitter thoughts. He didn't want anyone to know he was . . . maybe, sort of, a little bit jealous of Obi-Wan. Plain, ordinary Obi- Wan who never wanted to break the rules but was always talked into doing so. Obi-Wan with no sense of fun. Roth smirked. So he had changed in the past few years, so what? It still didn't change that *Obi-Wan Kenobi* was famous in the Temple and in the galaxy.  
  
Beula didn't appear too concerned with his angry tone. Her eyes were full of compassion, and she laid a small hand on Roth's arm, a gesture of comfort. Surprisingly, the small hand touched Roth to his very core. His heart was trying to escape up his throat, and he felt a longing to confide in this little girl. Beula, his closest friend, his favorite ally, his "little sister" Beula . . . He realized in that moment that she had come to mean more to him than any other person he knew. The thought scared him, and his thoughts twisted and turned. Eventually, he did the very Roth thing and rejected her.  
  
Turning away from her, Roth pretended to have to do something on the computer. Though it wasn't a cold shoulder, he felt Beula's pain and disappointment. He heard her walk away without another word, too much of a coward to watch her retreating back. He wanted to call after her and apologize, to tell her everything that he had been thinking, but he couldn't. He didn't know how.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Clem was getting nowhere. He'd been in the library for hours, and nothing the least bit significant had shown up. 'Of course,' he thought sardonically, 'that's what happens when you don't even know what you're looking for!' He sighed in exasperation and rubbed his temples at a furious rate. He would not, under any circumstances, give up. Maybe it was too late to save Lark, but it was not too late to expose Palpatine. And he *would* do that. If it was the last thing he did.  
  
'It's very nearly coming to that anyway,' he thought bitterly.  
  
Nothing changed in the course of the hours to come. Clem read names and dates to the point where they all blurred together. He knew he wasn't accomplishing anything, but he was at a loss as how to continue. He thought of asking Laura and Andy if they could have somebody help him, but they had already done enough for him. He hated being such a burden to his two best friends, and yet he couldn't find a way to do what he needed to do without them.  
  
He heard the doors slide open, but he didn't look up. Various people had walked into the library all day. Nobody noticed Clem, huddled on a computer in a far corner. He was trying to be as unobtrusive as possible.  
  
"Hello? Clem?" A trembling voice called into the echoing confines of the room. The voice was familiar, sweetly familiar.  
  
Clem's heart expanded painfully in his ribs. He would recognize that voice anywhere. He stood up on shaky legs, barely able to believe that he wasn't hearing things. Things created in his mind filled with longing. Longing for the one person he cared about the most, the one person he had shut himself off to. Time seemed to still around him, his lungs heaving in disbelief as the moment stretched into eternity. It couldn't be true.  
  
Yet it was. Gem was utterly real, standing in the middle of the library, wringing her hands together nervously, her eyes meeting his in an expression of hope, longing, and heartache that he knew he must be mirroring. The electricity sizzled between them, but Clem was at a loss. He wanted to touch her, to talk to her, to be with her . . . But he couldn't.  
  
Her eyes were unwavering, and relief filled him to the very brim. He inhaled and exhaled deeply, her name upon his lips in a breathless, disbelieving tone. "Gem . . ."  
  
* * * * *  
  
Roth spent most of that night thinking over the rejection he must have slapped Beula with. Other than his flickering emotional state, the trip had been smooth. He'd given his clearance codes without anything suspicious, but he and Beula hadn't been able to truly relax until they were safely in hyper space. After that, the ship was put on autopilot and Roth and Beula were given a chance to sleep.  
  
Roth struggled with this. Once he was in his cabin, he'd collapsed onto the stiff bed, completely set on falling asleep. He hadn't gotten much the night before, and he wanted relief. Just when he was on the bridge of blessed unconciousness, his conscience struck. Beula's emotions from earlier became his own, and he felt as if his world had crashed.  
  
Trying his best, Roth pushed the thoughts out of his mind, trying to blank it clear. It didn't work though. When he stopped thinking about how badly he hurt Beula, he started thinking about how much he'd changed. He'd always cared about people. Obi-Wan and his Master being at the top of the list. But both of them had been his friends. Beula seemed to be so much more. He wasn't sure how to handle it. He was clumsy with girls when they weren't the object of his desires.  
  
Roth sighed and turned over onto his back. The air seemed to be overheated, his blankets too tight, his thoughts too zippity. Everything was going wrong.  
  
Startling him into jumping out of bed, the doors to his quarters opened. A small figure stood in the shadows of the hallway, and he turned the lights on with a wave of his hand. Beula apparated before him, her mouth set in a grim line.  
  
"Do you knock?" Roth asked, biting out the first thing that came to his mind.  
  
Beula ignored him. "Roth, you're insufferable," she stated clearly.  
  
"Oh?" Roth said, raising one eyebrow at her, daring for her to continue.  
  
"Yes!" Beula hissed. "I was only trying to console you. Do you always keep emotions locked up tight inside of herself? In inpenetrable walls?"  
  
Roth's mind came up with a witty reply. He closed his eyes tight, swallowed his pride. "Yes," he managed to choke out. He snapped open his eyes to see Beula looking at him with surprise. Obviously, she hadn't expected this. He spoke again, his voice clearer, "Yes. I do."  
  
"Why?" Beula asked.  
  
Roth shrugged. He looked away from her -- anywhere but her eyes. They seemed to see right through him, and it was unnerving. "I don't know."  
  
"Don't you?" Beula asked absently. Looking away didn't help. He felt her gaze burning into his back, beckoning him.  
  
"I guess 'cause I don't . . . you know . . . like that kind of stuff," Roth managed to say.  
  
"What kind of stuff?"  
  
"Stuff!" Roth clarified, becoming angry with himself for being unable to answer and angry with her for her demands. "Emotional crap. You know."  
  
A smile tugged at Beula's lips. "Yeah, I guess I do know." She watched him for a while. Finally, he looked up at her, and their eyes locked together. This time she did smile, brilliantly in fact. "You don't have to act that way with me, Roth. I already know all of your faults. You can't escape from me."  
  
Roth forced himself to laugh, but it was brief and fake-sounding. He nodded at her. "I'll take that into consideration."  
  
"I'm glad to hear it," Beula said. She folded her arms across her chest and looked around. "So, are we done here?"  
  
"I think so," Roth said, unsure himself. He'd never had any talk about his feelings before. Even though this one wasn't as deep as he knew they could get, he still felt uncomfortable and out of place.  
  
"Good night, then," Beula said softly, turning around to leave.  
  
Just as her hand was about to slap the doors shut, Roth spoke without thinking. "Wait!" he cried out despeartely. Beula stopped and turned her head to look at him, her eyes questioning. He smiled crookedly. "While we're at it, I might as well let you know that . . . you're not just an apprentice to me, Beula. You're . . . you're my best friend. You know?"  
  
Beula looked truly happy, her face glowing. "Yeah. You too, Roth," she said softly before shutting the doors.  
  
Roth sighed and lay backwards on his bed. 'That went well,' he thought. He laughed softly. For some strange reason, he actually felt better. His heart was lighter, and his conscience was clear of guilt. This time when his eyes shut, he was able to enter the blissful peacefulness of slumber.  
  
* * * * *  
  
In an instant, Clem had Gem clapsed tightly in his arms. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe her in. Her scent drove him crazy, and he kissed the top of her head, feeling the softness of her hair beneath his lips.  
  
"I missed you," Clem whispered hoarsely, pulling her even tighter.  
  
Gem stiffened in his arms, and he carefully let her go. Her eyes were full of fire. "You *missed* me?" she demanded softly. A bitter laugh escaped her lips. "You should have communicated with me, Clem! I spent weeks worrying over you and what had happened. I didn't know whether you were dead or alive."  
  
Clem felt shamed. He looked down at the floor and offered a pitiful excuse. "I was scared. I didn't want to get you involved."  
  
"Too late for that," Gem said bluntly.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"This Jedi -- Obi-Wan Kenobi -- he and some girl working for Palpatine kept coming to me with questions about you. They came while I was packing yesterday, and they told me that they're sure that you did it. They *know*, Clem. You're not safe here. It's the most obvious place."  
  
Clem let out a deep breath. "Laura and Andy are prepared to hide me if they come in search of me."  
  
"You'll let them?" Gem asked, folding her arms across her chest and arching her eyebrows. "You don't think they've done enough for you?"  
  
"Of course they've done enough for me, and it kills me to ask them to do more!" Clem protested vehemently. He sighed. "But at the same time, I need to find out what Palpatine is hiding. I've vowed that it will be the last thing I ever do."  
  
Gem's eyes glittered, and he realized belatedly that she was close to tears. He held out a hand and touched her arm lightly. "Look, Gem . . . I'm gonna be all right."  
  
"No you're not," Gem said, shaking her head and brushing his arm away. She sniffled just slightly. "I'm not an idiot, Clem. And . . . you can bring me down with you."  
  
Clem's heart did a double beat. "No," he said firmly. "No."  
  
Gem smiled, but tears were falling down her cheeks silently. "Do you think you can stop me, Lorcan?"  
  
"No. But if I talk Andy into using his bodyguards to keep you locked up . . ." Clem let his threat hang in the air.  
  
Gem hit his upper arm. "You won't do that." She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on his shoulder. He automatically wrapped his arms around her waist. He closed his eyes again, relishing in the feeling of her. He knew it was wrong though. He shouldn't take what he could never have.  
  
"I missed you too," Gem whispered, her breath tingling the skin of his neck. "I missed you so much." She paused. "I realized something when you left."  
  
Something in the gravity of her voice set off a warning bell in Clem's head. He shook his head. "Don't say it, Gem," he said, but his voice had little conviction in it.  
  
"Like you can stop me. I travled across the galaxy for this. Clem, I love you . . . and, I know we're both going to die soon. Either from the plague or at Palpatine's hand. So, until then, I want you to stop being idealistic and love me back."  
  
Clem wanted to protest, but her words were weighted with the truth. He nodded. "Okay."  
  
"Really?" Gem asked in surprise, loosening her grip around his neck to look him in the face. "I was expecting more of a fight."  
  
Clem leaned his head down. "How can I fight you?" he asked just before their lips met.  
  
* * * * *  
  
"Good morning, Sabé," Palpatine greeted pleasantly as she entered his office the next morning. He looked up from something he was working on and smiled warmly at her.  
  
Sabé felt reassured by that smile. She couldn't wait to detail him with the news. She knew he would be proud of her. "Good morning," she responded.  
  
"How are you coming along?" Palpatine asked, leaning backwards in his richly furnished chair, his fingers folded in a temple as he regarded her questioningly.  
  
"Better than I anticipated," Sabé replied brightly. She sucked in her breath deeply. "It seems our culprit has left quite a few breadcrumbs along his 'escape'."  
  
"I'm delighted to hear it," Palpatine said, smiling as if he truly meant it.  
  
"We managed to uncover his tracks, as I said. He's back on Lark, hiding out in the palace."  
  
Palpatine's face turned white. "You know his exact location?" He reached for his comm unit pad. "Have you contacted security already?"  
  
Sabé put her hand up in a gesture that meant for him to stop. "Jedi Sagiv and Guiseppa went after him. We decided that this would be better if it was quieter."  
  
"Quieter?" Palpatine asked, his voice weak as he collapsed backward in his seat. Sabé didn't take the time to analyze his reactions.  
  
"Yes," she answered. "Lorcan didn't seem like the type, you know? We don't think he could have planned this whole thing out on his own."  
  
"Who helped him?"  
  
"A group called 'The Seperatists'."  
  
Palpatine's jaw clenched. His eyes turned hard. When spoke, his voice was cold. "You sent Sagiv and Guiseppa to Lark, and the real reason someone tried to kill me was a threatening terrorist group who broke away from the Republic?"  
  
Sabé nodded, suddenly feeling unsure of herself. This wasn't the reaction she'd expected, and she wasn't quite sure as to what was happening.  
  
"When did they leave?" Palpatine asked.  
  
"Last night," Sabé answered meekly.  
  
Palpatine stood up and clasped his hands behind him. "Thank you for keeping me updated, Sabé," he said stonily. "But I'm afraid that this is all the time we have for a personal meeting. I have to start preparing for the Senate. Since the danger seems to have moved off-planet, I can do with just Zoilo for now."  
  
"Yes, Your Excellency," Sabé said, bowing respectfully.  
  
"You may leave," Palpatine said dismissedly, waving a hand. "Send Zoilo in when you pass by him in the waiting room."  
  
Sabé nodded shortly and typed in the code to leave the room. She was shaken up, her thoughts muddled and confused. She knew that she should have figured something out in this meeting, but the answer seemed to be just out of grasp.  
  
* * * * *  
  
After Sabé left, Palpatine sat back down, resting his head in his hand and rubbing at his temples. He shouldn't get mad at her. She didn't know any better. She didn't know any better. He gripped at the sides of his head powerfully, the need to scream becoming strong. He would overcome it though. Things had worked out for him so far. Besides, what made him think that either Lorcan, Sagiv, or Guiseppa were intelligent enough to find any evidence?  
  
The doors slid open and Zoilo's blank stare greeted him. His jaw clenched furiously. "Those idiots went to Lark!"  
  
Zoilo knew. He knew everything. He nodded, understanding. "I told you that I could handle it. I don't see why you hired their help."  
  
"Because I wanted to get closer to Skywalker and Kenobi," Palpatine gritted out. "Did we not go over this?"  
  
"You haven't made an attempt to befriend them."  
  
Zoilo flew against a wall with a painful sounding thud. The proof of Palpatine's anger. He rubbed his fists and contemplated Force lightning. "Of course I haven't, you imbecile. I can't be obvious, or they might start to suspect. Both of them have brains, real brains. They're smarter than the average Jedi, let alone the average person."  
  
"I'm sorry, Your Excellency," Zoilo said in submission, hanging his head low.  
  
"You know what you need to do?"  
  
"Yes, Your Excellency."  
  
"Then do it." Palpatine paused. "And if you come back before it's done, I will kill you. Painfully, torturously. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes, Your Excellency. I will not fail, Your Excellency."  
  
"You'd better not, or your head is on this desk. Still alive, if I can manage it." 


	8. Chapter Eight

Sabé got over her confusion from her meeting with Palpatine, and she was as good as new by the time she arrived at Obi-Wan's apartment. They had nothing to do since Roth and Beula were taking care of it, so Obi-Wan had promised to start showing her how to make a light saber.  
  
She typed in the security code and walked right in. She hadn't felt comfortable enough to do that before, but now it was just Obi-Wan and Anakin. Neither of them would mind.  
  
Inside the apartment, Anakin was levitating something in front of him, practicing the Jedi arts, and Obi-Wan was sitting in front of a personal computer, staring at the screen with a look of blank confusion.  
  
"Hey!" Anakin cried as the object he was levitating fell to the ground. "Why'd you do that?"  
  
Sabé pulled out a piece of scrap paper from her cloak. "Will you forgive me if I give you Padmé's comm frequency?" she asked, using the plan she and Obi-Wan had worked out to get Anakin out of the way.  
  
Anakin jumped up and ran to her, grabbing the paper with numbers and looking at it with starry eyes. "Are you serious?" He looked up at Sabé with pained eyes. "Do you think she even wants to talk to me?"  
  
"Of course she does, Ani," Sabé reassured him. "Why don't you use the comm in your room for privacy?"  
  
Anakin didn't need to be asked twice. He was out of the room in a flash. Sabé walked over to Obi-Wan, sitting at the breakfast bar, and sat in the stool across from him. "What's wrong?"  
  
Obi-Wan turned off his computer and leaned over to give her a peck on the lips. As he pulled away, he looked contemplative. After a moment, he replied. "Sabé, tell me about your parents."  
  
Sabé was a little surprised at his question, but she answered anyway. "My mom stayed at home and schooled me. My dad worked at the Palace of Theed. That's how I ended up being Padmé's bodyguard," she said, saying the first things that came to her mind.  
  
Obi-Wan nodded along. "And your dad. Did you look like him?"  
  
Sabé shrugged. "I don't know. I guess so. Why are you asking me all this?"  
  
Obi-Wan ignored her questions. "How far back does your family tree go? Living on Naboo, I mean."  
  
"Far," Sabé replied. "Both my mother and father came from prestigious families. My grandfather on my dad's side was Senator for a few years."  
  
Obi-Wan shook his head. "There's something terribly wrong here."  
  
"Gee, thanks." Sabé took one of Obi-Wan's hands in her own and looked at him imploringly. "Tell me what's wrong, Obi-Wan."  
  
"I was just looking on the holonet. I even hacked into a few places. I've been wondering about your heritage for years now, and I finally found the incentive to do something about it." Obi-Wan paused. "Sabé, the reason you weren't tested for the Jedi temple was that Naboo has a population of Jedi at zero. For thousands of years, not one Jedi has been found on the planet. They eventually just gave up testing babies."  
  
Sabé's heart began pounding in her chest. "What does this mean?" she whispered. "Do you think that it was the Force?"  
  
"It could be," Obi-Wan admitted. "I don't think that's it though. This is something much simpler than that, I can feel it. I'm just not sure what it is I'm feeling."  
  
Sabé tried to absorb the information that he was giving her. "What are you saying?" she asked breathlessly after a minute. "I was adopted?"  
  
"I'm not saying anything," Obi-Wan said gently. "I have no idea what's going on, but, yes, it's possible that you could be adopted."  
  
Sabé jumped off of the bence defensively. "I have my mother's eyes and hair," she informed him heatedly. "How can you explain that, if I'm adopted? And . . . my mother . . . she and I have a bond that could never be that of two *strangers*."  
  
Obi-Wan stood up and pulled Sabé close, whispering soothing words. Sabé tensed at first, but then she melted against him as he slowly stroked her hair. "It just doesn't feel right," she finally murmered.  
  
"I'm sorry," Obi-Wan apologized. "I should have waited to tell you--"  
  
"No." Sabé pulled back slightly from his embrace and met his eyes. "I'm glad that you told me. I don't want you keeping anything from me."  
  
"Okay," Obi-Wan agreed simply. He leaned down and kissed her softly, an apologetic touching of lips. Sabé wrenched one hand onto his neck and pulled him down, pressing hard against his lips and using her tongue to ask for entrance. Obi-Wan didn't seem to mind the change of attitude at all. He eagerly drank from her lips, pulling her closer and letting himself just enjoy her.  
  
"Sabé, Pad-- Whoa!"  
  
Sabé pulled abruptly away from Obi-Wan while staying in his arms. Anakin had entered the living room, and he looked like he couldn't decide whether to be disgusted or to start laughing. "What?" she asked, trying to get his attention to what he had come in for.  
  
Anakin grinned. "So *that's* what Roth meant the other night."  
  
Obi-Wan let go of Sabé's waist and ran a hand through his hair. Sabé smirked at the gesture. She loved it when he did that. "What do you want, Ani?" Obi-Wan asked tiredly.  
  
"Padmé wanted to talk to Sabé, but I'll just tell her that you're busy," Anakin offered.  
  
"Tell her I'll comm her later tonight," Sabé added. Anakin nodded and left the room. Apparently his master making out with her wasn't enough to keep him away from Padmé for long.  
  
"Sorry about that," Obi-Wan muttered. "Shouldn't have lost control . . ."  
  
"Believe me, I didn't mind."  
  
Obi-Wan smirked at her, then eyed her obviously. "Well . . ."  
  
"Let's not get sidetracked," Sabé said. "I came over here for you to start teaching me how to make a lightsaber, and I plan on leaving with a little bit of that accomplished."  
  
"That can be arranged," Obi-Wan said reluctantly. "For a price."  
  
"I see where this is going."  
  
"Let me take you out again. This time just us," Obi-Wan continued.  
  
Sabé couldn't help smiling. "Okay," she said simply.  
  
Obi-Wan smiled back, a little bit shyly if she wasn't mistaken. "Great. Then we have no problem. I have everything set up on the coffee table."  
  
* * * * *  
  
Roth and Beula were on Lark in no time, and Roth easily found a place to park the ship for the next few days. He was overly fond of using the Force to tilt people's thoughts to what he wanted. Most Jedi frowned upon it, especially Obi-Wan, but Roth had seen a few changes in him over the years. Obi-Wan was willing to use the Force as his aid on occasion.  
  
Roth dressed in his Jedi robes for once, and he instructed Beula to do the same. They needed authority if they were going to get into the palace without a call from the Chancellor. Roth was beginning to wonder if they had moved to rashly. Should they have gotten Palpatine in on it before they left? He shook of his wonderings. Obi-Wan and Sabé could deal with that now. It wasn't his problem anymore.  
  
Roth met Beula just outside of the ship, on the docking bay, and they went into the city of Gaiku. It didn't take them long to find directions to the palace, and thanks to Roth, they found a man who conveniently gave them his landspeeder. Beula reminded Roth that he could have just rented one, but Roth complained that rented ones were also in bad shape and that he was on the case of the Chancellor's assassin. Beula reminded him that she was too, and they quickly got into an argument.  
  
The heated words were playful, as usual, but Roth could feel the change in their relationship. He felt closer to Beula, and he knew that, in turn, she felt closer to him. Talking out the night before had been one of the only smart things he'd done in his life. Choosing Beula as an apprentice was amoung the small list of smart things he'd done. They were attuned to each other more closely than Roth had ever been to his Master, and he was convinced that they would go far. They might even become as famous as Obi- Wan and Anakin someday.  
  
Once they got the palace, it wasn't so easy anymore. The guards that surrounded the place weren't very weak-willed, and even with Beula and Roth working together, they couldn't convince them to let them through.  
  
"We really *are* Jedi," Roth insisted hotly. "See the robes?"  
  
"Anybody could wear those robes." "Who would want to?" Roth retorted, disgusted. "I mean willingly."  
  
"You two," the guard replied smartly.  
  
"We're searching for a fugitive, and we have reason to believe that he's in this palace," Beula broke in, using her calm voice to try and make up for Roth's repeated sarcasm.  
  
"Look, little girl, I'm sorry, but we can't let you in," another guard said. "We don't have any message from either the Jedi Temple or the Senate."  
  
Roth let out an angry breath. "That's because this isn't exactly public! Look, I can get the Chancellor to talk to you, if you want, but I'm sure that he'd be very angry. And I know from experience that he's not a fun guy when he's angry. Especially if he has Zoilo with him."  
  
Beula nodded seriously. "We're not kidding either."  
  
"Come back when you have proof," the guard said, pretending to yawn.  
  
Roth sighed and shrugged. "All right then." In one flash, he had his lightsaber in his hand and turned it on. The guard looked startled, as if he was afraid that Roth was going to attack him. But instead, Roth turned around and crashed the blade down onto Beula. As he expected, she already had her blade out and was rashly defending herself. She knew what was going on. Roth's smile grew as they twisted and twirled, delicately slamming lightsaber against lightsaber as they put on a show for the guards. Yeah, they were attuned all right.  
  
In unison, he and Beula shut off their lightsabers and stood, looking daringly at the guards. "Do you believe that we're Jedi now?" Roth asked. He wasn't out of breath, but his heart was pumping with the thrill of it. Never would he get over the personal joys he got from a lightsaber battle, even a mock one.  
  
The guard that seemed to be in charge nodded numbly. "I guess so," he said weakly.  
  
Another guard pulled a commlink out of his sleeve and turned it on. "We've got some vistors," he said into the commlink. "They want to speak with you and the Queen." He must have got a reply, because a second later he shoved the commlink back up his sleeve and gestured for Roth and Beula to follow him.  
  
Beula looked taken aback by the beauty of the palace as they went from hallway to hallway. She looked around her in awe. Roth shook his head sadly. He wouldn't understand that part of her that was a girl.  
  
All of me is a girl, thank you, Beula replied, invading his thoughts.  
  
Roth didn't even flinch. Maybe you should show me sometime.  
  
Beula rolled her eyes. Yeah. Keep on dreaming, Jedi-boy.  
  
The light conversation made Roth even more at ease. He was confident, and he was going to do what he came to do. Regardless of how many lightsaber fights he had to get into with Beula.  
  
Unfortunately for him, it didn't come to that. They were quickly led into a room where a man and woman introduced as the King and Queen greeted them. It seemed to be an office of some sort, but Roth quickly focused in on the two people instead of his surroundings. The slightest wink of an eye could give something away.  
  
The guard left, staying at the door, as Roth's Jedi senses told him, and he and Beula were asked to sit down on a comfortable yet stylish couch across from the King and Queen.  
  
The Queen gave her husband a nervous look. He must have given her a signal, because she quickly sobered and turned a cool gaze onto Roth and Beula. "You are Jedi, I suppose?" she asked, pointedly eyeing their attire.  
  
She's a smart one, Beula cracked dryly.  
  
"Jedi Sagiv," Roth said briefly, holding out a hand.  
  
"Jedi Guiseppa," Beula said afterwards. Her eyes were cold and indifferent. Roth felt something akin to pride inside of him. Beula was good. This was the first time she'd been introduced to royalty on a mission like this. He was glad once again that they'd gotten out of "babysitting" the Chancellor.  
  
"Greetings," Queen Fluharty said, nodding briefly. "To what to we owe this pleasure?"  
  
"I'm going to be blunt," Roth said, leaning forward, elbows on his knees. "We believe that you are hiding a fugitive here in your palace."  
  
The King and Queen looked properly affronted. "I beg your pardon!" King Fluharty interjected.  
  
"Let me correct Jedi Sagiv here," Beula said. "We *know* that you are hiding a fugitive. His name is Clemens Lorcan, and he's wanted for attempted assassination on our Chancellor, Dantuis Palpatine." She smiled. "But you already know all of this."  
  
The Queen brought a hand to her chest. "Whatever would make you think--"  
  
Roth interrupted. "We have recordings of a certain comm conversation between you and Gemina Yrrk. There's no need to deny anything."  
  
The two stood frozen for a minute, not even glancing at each other. The King finally broke, his voice softer than before. "What do you want?"  
  
"Isn't it obvious?" Beula snorted. "We're here to get Lorcan."  
  
The two didn't move.  
  
Roth sighed. "Look, we know you have him. Bring him here. If you attempt to keep him from us, then we will have reason to arrest you as well. Don't think that the Senate just sent two Jedi either. They're a lot smarter than that."  
  
King Fluharty gave up. "Just a moment please," he said icily.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Sabé was true to her word. That evening, she allowed Obi-Wan to take her out to an expensive restaurant. Anakin, sadly, had to stay at home. He didn't seem to mind though. Sabé could already see the wheels turning in his head. He was going to tease Obi-Wan mercilessly when he got back.  
  
"This is nice," Sabé said softly as they sat down.  
  
"I know. You're not wearing one of your flight suits," Obi-Wan said, smiling. "Not that I'm complaining about them or anything."  
  
"I clean up rather nicely, don't I?" Sabé said unashamedly, giving him a sultry look.  
  
"I already knew that," Obi-Wan told her. He cleared his throat suddenly. She saw his hand twitch as if wanting to run through his hair, but he had the constraint to stop himself. "I'm not used to doing this kind of thing. Is this . . . romantic enough?"  
  
Sabé raised her eyebrows as she looked around. "I wouldn't know. One thing you can be glad to hear, Obi-Wan, is that I don't require flowers, candy, or love letters." She smiled. "Though if you decided to treat me every once in awhile, I wouldn't mind terribly."  
  
"I'll keep that in mind," Obi-Wan murmered as the waiter came. It was a human waiter instead of a droid, and she took their drinks, promising to come back when they had decided on something to eat.  
  
Sabé looked down at the menu in front of her. "I'm at a loss," she finally said. She looked up and met Obi-Wan's eyes. "You know, I've never been to a place like this except as Palpatine's bodyguard."  
  
"I try to avoid these places at all costs," Obi-Wan confided. "I hate the stuffy people that eat at these restaurants."  
  
The waiter came back in record time, and Obi-Wan and Sabé stayed safe by ordering the special.  
  
Afterwards, Sabé felt a little awkward. As was her usual style, she blurted out what she was thinking. "With Roth and Beula getting Lorcan, this case is probably going to be closed soon," she said extremely casually.  
  
Obi-Wan sighed. "I know. But we're both on planet. You are staying with Palpatine, right?"  
  
"As far as I can see ahead, yes."  
  
"Then we can still be together," Obi-Wan, a touch of finality in his voice.  
  
"It's not that easy though," Sabé protested, breeching the subject. "I know what your Jedi missions are like. You're off planet more than you are on. And when you're in the Temple, you're probably going to be busy."  
  
"I'll make time for you," Obi-Wan promised loyally. He reached across the table and took her hand in his, delicately holding it at the center of the white tablecloth. He smiled slightly. "And when we're apart, you can expect exceedingly long, mushy love letters from me. I'll send you three a day."  
  
"You'd better not," Sabé said quickly. They both smiled at the intensity in her voice. She coughed slightly. "Just, um, don't lose touch."  
  
"I will write you," Obi-Wan said seriously. "And we can comm each other all the time. Then when I'm on planet, I'll spend every waking second with you."  
  
"Is it going to be like that for the rest of our lives?" Sabé asked bluntly.  
  
Obi-Wan contemplated this for a moment. Finally, he answered. "I don't know for sure. I don't want it to be that way. But, Sabé, for the time being, we'll have to make do. It's never going to be easy for us."  
  
"I know." Sabé smiled a little sadly. "I guess I should have thought of that before I fell head over heels for a Jedi."  
  
"I doubt it would have stopped you," Obi-Wan said. "At least, I hope it wouldn't have stopped you."  
  
"I don't think anything could have stopped me," Sabé admitted. She smiled slyly. "Not with you attacking me with your lips every day."  
  
Obi-Wan pretended to be offended. "Hey! You weren't so innocent yourself." He shrugged. "Besides, I tried to stay away from you."  
  
"Inevitable, isn't it?" Sabé said, her voice a little dreamy.  
  
Obi-Wan looked at her face across the table in a way that made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. "Yeah," he repeated softly, "inevitable." 


	9. Chapter Nine

As Clem basked in the warmth of the body lying next to him, he closed his eyes slightly. A slight smile was on his features, as well as a smug, relaxed look that only a man can have after such activities as he'd just finished with Gem. His smile grew a little bit. Everything seemed to be right in the world. He wouldn't even let himself think about the impending danger. No, he would just think about Gem.  
  
Gem shifted and leaned over him, her dark hair falling around her face in a curtain. She was smiling softly and shyly. "Hi."  
  
Laughter bubbled up inside of Clem. "That's a nice conversation intro. Simple and to the point," he teased.  
  
Gem hit his shoulder playfully. "Shut up," she muttered. "I've never done this type of thing before." Her eyes darkened. "Are you an expert on post- coital conversations?"  
  
Clem decided it was best to stay on her good side. "No, ma'am."  
  
"That's what I thought," Gem said. She leaned down and kissed him. Not soft, but not full of passion either. The kiss was full of love, and Clem's heart pounded ferociously in his heart. She pulled away and grinned. "Was that a better opener?"  
  
"Much better." Clem kissed her throat, then began to trail little kisses along the skin, enjoying the salty taste of her softness.  
  
Gem moaned softly. "Not again."  
  
Clem pulled away. "Why not?"  
  
"Because I want to talk," Gem said firmly. She sat upwards against the headboard of her bed, clutching the blankets around her slight form.  
  
"Okay." Clem sat up next to her. He took her hand in his, and their eyes met. "Hi."  
  
Gem laughed just as he had earlier. "Is that how stupid I sounded?"  
  
"More or less." Clem shrugged. "What do you want to talk about?"  
  
Gem looked uncomfortable. "I don't know."  
  
"Gem . . ."  
  
Gem sighed. "Do you really think we should be staying with Andy and Laura?" she asked.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean . . . it's the most obvious place, isn't it?" Gem pointed out. "Maybe we should leave. Go into the country side or something. Somewhere where they won't be able to find us."  
  
"And leave this? Leave Andy and Laura to watch Lark die? I can't do that."  
  
"Not forever," Gem said quickly. "Just for a little while. We'll lie low until we think it's safe, then we'll come back to Gaiku."  
  
Clem sighed heavily. "I don't know. I'll think about."  
  
"It will give us more time to be together," Gem said a little seductively. She ran her thumb over the sensitive skin of his wrist.  
  
Clem's heart tightened. "When?"  
  
"Soon. The Senate aren't stupid. They'll find us eventually," Gem said. "We need to get out of here as soon as possible."  
  
"What about the library?" Clem asked. "Revenge?"  
  
Gem paused, thinking about it. "You could download a lot of it onto data disks. We'll take those with us."  
  
Clem shook his head. "No, Gem. No."  
  
"Why not?" Gem demanded heatedly.  
  
"Because I vowed to myself that I would bring Palpatine down. And, as shocking as this may sound, not even you can distract me from that," Clem said firmly.  
  
Gem crossed her arms across her chest angrily. "Fine. But if you get killed or taken to Coruscant, then it's your own damn fault."  
  
Clem smiled at her. "And you'll follow me wherever I go."  
  
"You don't know that."  
  
"Yes, I do." Clem took her hand and kissed it softly, not breaking eye contact with Gem. "I would do the same if our situations were reversed."  
  
"I think that's the most romantic thing you've ever said in your life," Gem said softly. She wrapped one arm around his neck and they pulled together for a kiss.  
  
The harsh sound of the doors opening interrupted their moment. "Cl--Oh, dear God," Laura's voice could be heard.  
  
Gem wrenched herself away from Clem in horror. Laura had turned her back to them. "Sorry," Gem quickly apologized. She wrapped the blankets as tightly as she could around her body. "What did you want?"  
  
"Could you ask us later?" Clem added. Gem shot him a dirty look.  
  
"I could," Laura said slowly, "but the two Jedi waiting in Andy's office might be a little pissed."  
  
"Sith!" Gem swore. She leaped out of the bed and started picking up her close, keeping the blanket around her body. Clem might have complained that she had taken the blankets so that he couldn't cover himself, but he was too numb from what Laura had said.  
  
"Is it Kenobi?" Clem asked after a moment, his voice soft. Gem started throwing his clothes at him since he didn't seem to be able to get them for himself.  
  
"No, thank God," Laura said. "I didn't recognize these two. But they know everything, so don't try and hide anything. It'll just get them mad."  
  
"How do they know everything?" Gem asked. She pulled on the tunic she'd been wearing and began to smooth down her hair. She didn't want these two Jedi knowing what she and Clem had been doing.  
  
"They have a recorded disk of our conversation over the comm frequencies," Laura said miserably. "I knew I shouldn't have told you so much!"  
  
"Didn't you encrypt it or anything?" Gem demanded.  
  
"I didn't think about it -- I was too focused on talking to you," Laura admitted. "Can I turn around now."  
  
"Yes. Clem, put your tunic on," Gem commanded. Clem pulled the fabric over his head and leaned over the side of the bed to pull on his boots.  
  
Gem began to yank on her own boots, ignoring the pathetic look Laura had on her face. "Is there any way we can escape?" Gem asked logically.  
  
"They said they had backup."  
  
Gem took a deep breath, trying to center her thoughts. "Was there a girl?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
Gem felt relieved. She stood up, completely dressed, and hope she didn't look too disgruntled. "Was her name Sabé?"  
  
"I'm sorry," Laura said. "I don't even know her name. She had a Jedi title though. I was too nervous to even remember."  
  
Gem sighed. Sabé had told her that she was merely a security guard. That meant that they couldn't plead their case. "Well, then let's go face them."  
  
Laura nodded and started out the door. Gem began to follow after her, but Clem caught her and pulled her close for a short, hard kiss. "I love you," he whispered, his breath warming her skin.  
  
"Yeah, me too," Gem retorted.  
  
With that, they left to face their doom.  
  
* * * * *  
  
Do you think they're going to help Lorcan escape? Beula asked, breaking up the thoughts racing through Roth's head as they waited in Fluharty's office.  
  
They think we have backup, Roth said, though he himself had a few lingering doubts. I think we caught them off guard.  
  
I feel like we're doing something very wrong here, Beula said worriedly.  
  
Why? Roth asked.  
  
I don't know. I'm . . . uneasy. This isn't how it should be, Beula said contemplatively.  
  
Roth was about to reply, but the doors opened with a swish. The Queen entered regally, and behind her followed a man and a woman whom he assumed were Yrrk and Lorcan. They both looked mussed up; their clothes were wrinkled and looked as if they'd just been thrown on. Wonder what we interrupted, Roth commented to Beula dryly.  
  
It is a mystery we have yet to solve, Beula replied in the same tone. Now what are we supposed to do? Introduce ourselves? Start talking about the weather?  
  
That's a good idea. Roth stared pointedly at the man. "I'm assuming you're Lorcan."  
  
The man stiffened visibly. "Clemens Lorcan," he offered, holding out a hand.  
  
Roth coolly stared at it. Lorcan brought it back to his side after a moment. While the King and Queen sat in the couch as before, Yrrk and Lorcan were standing awkwardly to the side.  
  
"You can call me Jedi Sagiv," Roth said. He nodded at Beula. "This is Jedi Guiseppa, my apprentice."  
  
It's rather amusing how you managed to work that in there.  
  
Shut up. I'm trying to be intimidating here.  
  
Lorcan held up a hand. "Hi."  
  
Yrrk's gaze was cold and demanding. "What are you about?" she asked when it seemed that nobody else would start the conversation.  
  
"Isn't it obvious?" Roth asked. "Lorcan, we've been sent to arrest you to stand trial on Coruscant for the attempted assassination of the Senate's Chancellor, Dantius Palpatine. Do you have anything to say?"  
  
"Yes," Lorcan said, his voice meek. Yrrk shoved him slightly, and he jumped. "You've only heard your precious Palpatine's version. Why don't you hear my side of it?"  
  
Roth raised his eyebrows and met Beula's gaze. Precious? she asked. She turned back to Lorcan. Surprisingly, though she was half his age, he gulped slightly at her hardened eyes. "We'll be willing to listen to you."  
  
"Don't get your hopes up, though," Roth added. "We're just trying to add some entertainment to our otherwise boring job."  
  
Roth! Beula scolded. Don't joke around with him.  
  
I wasn't joking, Roth said defensively.  
  
Lorcan looked incredibly relieved. "You will? Really?" Yrrk shoved him again. He turned around and shot her a dirty look.  
  
I'm starting to think Sabé was right about these two being lovers.  
  
Whatever gave it away? Beula asked.  
  
"Are Their Majesties going to be dragged along with this?" Yrrk asked, glancing shortly at the King and Queen.  
  
"I'm going to refrain from answering anything just now. You can spill out your story, but we're leaving for Coruscant tomorrow." Roth looked darkly at Lorcan. "And you're coming with us."  
  
* * * * *  
  
"I don't trust them," Beula announced that night as she ruffled up the pillows on a bed in the room they had been offered at the palace. "Why are they being so nice to us when we're going to arrest their friend? It's not because of our threat of backup."  
  
"Lorcan is going to be held in court," Roth said logically. "He's going to announce his little story galaxy-wide because the press will cover such an event. He's desperate to get somebody to listen and believe his story."  
  
"About that." Beula paused. "What do you think?"  
  
Roth sighed. "I think that as far as they are convinced, it's the truth they're speaking."  
  
"But it could just be a story that they made up in their minds." Beula shook her head. "It's not entirely impossible, you know. What happened."  
  
Roth met Beula's eyes across the room. "So I'm not alone."  
  
"I don't know Zoilo that well, but I think we both know enough of him to note that he's entirely capable of doing something like this," Beula said.  
  
"Releasing an epidemic on a world? What reason does he have?" Roth asked. Secretly, he agreed with Beula though. He was convinced that Zoilo was capable of anything.  
  
"I don't know!" Beula threw her hands up helplessly. "He would never let anyone inside enough to be able to have answers to his motives. Maybe he considers it a game or something."  
  
Roth shook his head. "No. I can feel it. There's something about all this. The Force is trying to tell us something."  
  
Beula gave Roth a look. "If you think I'm going to start meditating, then you can go request your own room."  
  
Roth rolled his eyes. "I'm about as fond of meditating as you are." He grinned slightly. "But you know who *does* like meditating?"  
  
Beula raised her eyebrows slightly. "You're going to ask Obi-Wan to meditate over this?"  
  
"It couldn't hurt." Roth walked over to the comm unit in the room, looking at the model and considering turning it on.  
  
"That thing is probably rigged," Beula said. "They'll listen to everything you say. Then they'll know that it's a possibility that you believe them. That will just make them more vicious. They won't stop until we believe them."  
  
Roth flashed her a grin. "I'm not easily influenced." He ran a hand over the machine. "There," he said smugly. "Let them try and listen to my conversation now."  
  
"Do you even remember the frequency that apartment is on?" Beula asked reasonably.  
  
Roth tapped his head. "I've got a Jedi's mind, honey. I remember everything."  
  
Beula wrinkled her nose at him. "Don't try the 'honey' thing. It doesn't do anything for you."  
  
Roth ignored her as he turned on the comm and typed in the code to the apartment back on Coruscant. He mentally crossed his fingers, hoping that Obi-Wan wasn't doing something stupid like spending another night over at Sabé's place.  
  
Luckily, Obi-Wan's face appeared on the screen in no time. "Roth?"  
  
"Obi-Wan," Roth acknowledged. "Look, I need you to do something for you."  
  
"Did you arrive safely? Are you okay?" Obi-Wan asked. "What about Lorcan?"  
  
"We have Lorcan," Roth said. He sighed. "He fed us the same story that Yrrk fed you and Sabé."  
  
Obi-Wan nodded slowly. "It's kind of hard to disregard the truth in their voices, isn't it?" he asked quietly.  
  
"Do you feel it too?"  
  
"Yes. This thing is bigger than it appears."  
  
"Of course. Why else would they get the all mighty Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker on such a stupid little case?" Roth didn't wait for an answer. "I think it's Zoilo."  
  
"That's possible. It's crossed my mind several times as a matter of fact."  
  
"Look, Beula and I are going to meditate on this so . . . I was thinking that you and Anakin and even your little girlfriend could do the same," Roth said casually.  
  
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. "We'll work on it."  
  
"All right. I guess I'll see you tomorrow night then."  
  
"Wait," Obi-Wan said quickly. He smirked. "Since you're going to be meditating and all, I want you to think about something for me."  
  
"I've told you before, man, I'm not that way."  
  
Obi-Wan ignored him. "I never told you everything about what happened with Sabé and me when we first met."  
  
"From the way things are looking, I really don't want all the personal details. Unless she's kinky. Kinky girls interest me."  
  
"Shut up and listen," Obi-Wan severely. "Sabé has Jedi powers, as I'm sure you've figured out. You're not as stupid as you look." He sighed. "She's strong in the Force too. Stronger than the average Jedi, though not exceedingly so. She didn't know why she wasn't checked as a baby."  
  
"And you found out for her," Roth continued for him quietly, running Obi- Wan's words over in his mind. "Why?"  
  
"There hasn't been Jedi blood on Naboo, her home planet, for a millenia. I don't think there was any Jedi blood to begin with. Something else is going on there too. I want to find out for her."  
  
"Could her mom have had an affair with someone off-planet?"  
  
"Her mother was from a prestigious family on Naboo, but from records, she never left the planet. Naboo is a quiet world, and visitors aren't exactly an everyday thing. It's very unlikely."  
  
"Adoption?"  
  
"Sabé says that doesn't feel right."  
  
"All right then. I'll meditate on this," Roth promised with a wink. He exchanged good-byes then turned off the comm unit. Obi-Wan knew very well that Roth wasn't going to meditate, but Roth wasn't stupid. He knew Obi-Wan was counting on him for coming up with an answer.  
  
When Roth turned around, Beula had an odd look on her face.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Beula snapped to attention. "I think I've got it."  
  
"Got what?"  
  
"The answer to everything."  
  
* * * * *  
  
AN: Sorry it took so long to get this out. Thank you to all who reviewed the past chapter, and remember to review this one. A lot of things are going to come out in the next few chapters. Nobody flame me or criticize my planning of the way things happen. It's just a story, after all. 


	10. Chapter Ten

Beula was trembling as she and Roth stared at each other. She knew she was on the verge of something -- the first layer of a planet's surface; once she peeled it away, she'd eventually get to the core of it. She had one theory that might tie all of the loose ends into neat little bows.

"Well?" Roth prodded. "What are you thinking?"

"Sabé is a Jedi, but she was never sent to the Temple," Beula began slowly. "And I doubt that she can be the only one in the whole galaxy who that happened to. What if . . . what if Zoilo was also a Jedi?"

Roth looked confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"He has something to hide!" Beula insisted. She paused, trying to gather her thoughts. "This is it, I know it, Roth."

Roth closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he nodded reluctantly. "So it would appear. Do you think Zoilo is from Lark?"

"Well, it's not as if we had enlightening conversations about our past while we worked together," Beula snapped. "How should I know?"

"Okay, okay," Roth said patiently. He put his hands on his head. "I have a feeling that we've almost got it. But if we go in the wrong direction, we could lose all of this perception."

"I have the same feeling," Beula said softly. "Lorcan mentioned that he's been researching in a library, records and such. We can just walk in, type in Zoilo, and see if anything comes up."

"Sounds simple," Roth said. "What if we get caught?"

"Who cares?" Beula said. "We're Jedi. They're not going to mess with us." She smirked. "After all, they did see hands on what we can do with our little badass light sabers."

Roth gave her one of his rare *true* smiles. "This is one of those moments when I'm glad that I took you on as my apprentice."

Beula smiled back, but she had no idea what to say back to him. Roth settled it because, before there was enough time for an uncomfortable pause, he clapped his hands. "All right, then. Let's do this."

A few minutes later, they both walked out of the room they'd been assigned. Using the Force, they quickly located the library . . . and several beings inside of it. Roth and Beula exchanged a look that clearly read "Lorcan" and hurried down the corridors.

They swept into the library, startling the four people looking through disks and pouring over computers. Lorcan, Yrrk, and the Fluhartys. Without giving them a chance to panic, Roth announced loudly, "We have a lead."

Beula walked directly to the King, who was on a computer. "A theory, at least," she corrected. "I assume you have all records of birth in here?"

The King nodded numbly. "Why?"

Roth was looking directly at Lorcan. "You've encountered Zoilo. The hulking creature you described."

"You think he could have done this?" Yrrk butted in. "Why?"

"I don't know," Roth admitted. "The Force is trying to tell us something."

"It's on your side," Beula added. She shrugged. "Something here isn't right, and we acknowledge that. We're going to help you until we find out what that is."

"Does everyone agree with you?" The Queen asked. "How are you going to stop anyone else from arresting Clem?"

Roth looked at his feet. "Well, we kind of might've exaggerated a little bit about that backup."

"What do you mean?" Lorcan asked, looking like he'd just been offered a gift.

"There's no backup," Beula said bluntly. "We said that to scare you. There are only three people who know we're even here. Well . . . I'm sure they told Palpatine."

"And what if Palpatine told this Zoilo guy?" The King questioned. "What if he takes it upon himself to send backup. Or worse, to come here as backup. Finish Clem off and everything."

Beula snorted. "No. He's too stupid for that."

"If he's too stupid for that, then how could he have put this all together? Where would he get the material?" Yrrk pointed out.

Beula sighed. "I don't know. I don't know everything. I just know that you're telling the truth. Someone at the Senate switched those tapes because they didn't want help sent to Lark. Roth and I saw the destruction when we came here. Why would you lie to the Senate about something like this when so many people are in danger?"

"That's what we've been saying!" Lorcan burst out. He was filled with obvious relief though. "You actually believe me?"

"We don't know," Roth put in before Beula could speak. "We just know that something else is going on here. We're going to find out what."

"All right. What's your theory?" Yrrk asked.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi, I'm sure you've heard of him, has this friend--" Roth stopped to smirk for a second. "You know. Anyway, she has Jedi powers according to him."

"What's so extraordinary about that?"

"You see, the Jedi Temple works in a certain way. Every baby is tested for midichlorians. If they have more than seven thousand, I think it is, then they're sent to the Temple for training. *Every* baby is tested on *every* planet."

"Then how did they bi-pass this woman?"

Roth shrugged. "That's what we're trying to figure out. Obi-Wan found out that on Sabé's home planet, Naboo, there hasn't been a Jedi for a millennia. They gave up on checking the children, because that gene is dead there."

"There are planets that the gene is dead on?" Yrrk asked. "Do you know where this Zoilo guy is from?"

"We're thinking from here," Beula put in. "Can you look him up on the computer."

"Why here? Children are still checked for midichlorians," King Fluharty said, moving his fingers over the keyboard as if about to type on their cue.

"Maybe they skipped over him. But whoever released that biological weapon has to have a motive," Beula said. "What if he's from here, but he has to hide his Jedi abilities. I'm sure the Council would check him out at the very least."

Roth was pinching his chin slightly. He began to pace. "Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon . . ." he said, more to himself than anyone else. He stopped suddenly. "The Sith Lord."

"What about it?" Beula asked, turning around to look at her Master curiously.

"Did you pay attention at all during your Temple education?" Roth asked exasperatedly.

"Hey! Look who's talking," Beula interrupted.

"Sith Lords always travel in twos, just like the Jedi," Roth said, each word coming out faster than the one before. "Obi-Wan killed one Sith. The Council was concerned about another one, but I think it's been so long that they've just become wary. What if there was another Sith? What if he took on an apprentice? Hell, what if Zoilo himself was that other Sith? He'd have to have Jedi powers to be a Sith."

Beula closed her eyes suddenly. She froze in place. All of the Larkians were looking at her with concern, but Roth waved his hand at them, as if to tell them to let it go. "She's using the Force for answers," he whispered so as not to disturb them.

When Beula's eyes snapped open again, her face was twisted into an elated expression. "You *are* good for something, Roth!"

"Gee, thanks."

"This has got to be it. I-I remember . . . I had brushed it aside, not even thinking about it, but now I remember. I walked into Palpatine's office. He and Zoilo were talking . . . and *the word Sith came up*. Not in a curse form either. They were talking seriously. I don't think they know that I heard them."

Everyone in the room was still. Even those that weren't perceptive felt the Force sizzling around them, growing with each truth that was spoken.

"That would explain why he'd have to quiet Lark," Lorcan said, his voice soft so that he wouldn't completely break the spell upon them all. "If he's one of these Siths, then obviously he wouldn't want people to know about his identity."

"Look," Beula commanded the King, her voice barely audible as she pointed to the screen of the screen. "Look for Zoilo."

"No," Lorcan said. "That's his first name."

"Really?" Roth said, looking surprised that this man knew more than him.

"Yes. He introduced himself to us," Yrrk said. "His last name . . . it starts with a 'P'. I remember. He told us that he goes by Zoilo."

"Wow. You guys had a longer conversation with him than we ever had," Beula said sarcastically. She snorted. "Can't say I'm too jealous."

"Pollock," Lorcan said suddenly. "That's his name."

The King's fingers moved across the keys, typing in Pollock.

* * * * *

Light years away, Obi-Wan felt that same sizzle in the Force as he and Sabé sat on the couch after their date. They were in the process of making up for those three years they were apart, and all of the time they were together when the couldn't really be together.

Obi-Wan broke away from Sabé suddenly. "Do you feel that?"

Sabé twirled some of the hair at the back of his neck. She smiled at him. "I can feel it all right."

Obi-Wan shot her a mirth-filled look, but then he was serious again. "No. The Force."

Sabé pulled her arms away from his neck. She tried to quiet her pounding heartbeat so that she could hear the Force beyond her. She closed her eyes and dived deep into her center, as Obi-Wan had taught her back on the Nubian.

When she opened her eyes, Obi-Wan exchanged a look with her. "Do you feel it now?"

"Something's happening," she said. "What?"

"It's Roth," Obi-Wan said with conviction. "I know him better than you do. We have a bond." He shook his head. "You heard what he said over the comm. What if Lorcan escaped? Or they tried to overthrow him?" Obi-Wan shuddered.

Sabé shook her head. She took Obi-Wan's hand in hers to offer comfort. "No. It's not that kind of Force message. Something important is happening."

Obi-Wan stood up, yanked a hand through his hair. "We shouldn't have let them go to Lark by themselves. With no backup! What if . . . Force." He looked at Sabé again, his hand on the back of his neck. "Did Palpatine say anything about sending anyone after Roth?"

"No." Sabé ran the conversation with Palpatine over again in her head. "He was acting weird though. I got a . . . a cold feeling from him. Strangely enough, I think he was majorly pissed at us."

Obi-Wan smiled slightly and very quickly. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I forgot." She chuckled. "It's easier than I'd like to forget things when I'm with you."

"Can we have a romantic interlude later? We'll get back to the sweet nothings." Obi-Wan paused. "Why would Palpatine be mad at us? What was it exactly that we did?"

"It was probably just that we did something without consulting him first," Sabé said, brushing the scene aside.

"Well, we're about to do something without consulting him again. Go pack your bags, Sabé."

Sabé stood up warily. "What are you planning?" she asked cautiously.

"We're going to Lark," Obi-Wan said matter-of-factly. "And you're coming with Anakin and me too. I don't want to have you here if something happens."

"What about Palpatine?"

"He won't mind. He practically dismissed us anyway."

"All right. But if I lose my job because of this, then you're going to support me financially until I get a new one," Sabé said reluctantly.

"No problem. I'd be happy to let you live at the Temple with me. We'll make Anakin sleep in the gym."

Sabé laughed shortly. "You always manage to get one of your comments in at a situation like this, don't you?"

"I think it's a defense mechanism," Obi-Wan admitted. "Hurry up though. Go get a few things while I wake up Anakin."

* * * * *

The silence was tangible as the two Jedi and three Larkians crowded around King Fluharty, holding their breath as he searched through file after file. The clock ticked on, minute after minute after minute. For Roth and Beula, the Force seemed to become more palpable with the time. They knew they were on the brink of something; they just had to find proof.

King Fluharty pounded on the table suddenly, his eyes fierce. The Queen quickly put her arm around his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"That's it," the King said. "There's nothing else to look through."

"Are you sure?" Beula couldn't help asking.

The King turned around in his seat to give her a look. "If Zoilo Pollock was born on Lark, then we would know by now. Your theory doesn't hold out."

Beula let out a string of curse words that Roth guiltily wondered if he'd taught her. "What happened?" She turned around to look at Roth. "We had it. I know we had it."

Roth shrugged. He, too, was as strung out as Beula. "Maybe the Force was wrong."

Beula gave him an incredulous look. "Yeah, I'm sure that's it." She turned back to the screen. "We did something wrong. The Force is still here. It's trying to tell us something."

"I don't know what kind of Jedi crap you believe in, but you're Force is wrong," Yrrk spat.

In a flash, Beula had her light saber out, tilting it menacingly at Yrrk. Roth grabbed her arm and pulled her back while Lorcan put a protective arm around his lover. "Beula, stop, this won't work," Roth whispered into her ear. "Close your eyes and be one with the Force."

"Encouraging me to meditate," Beula muttered, but she obeyed anyway. The Larkians seemed to sense that they shouldn't break the silence, and they all stood stock-still, staring at the Jedi, waiting for them to come up with an answer.

"This isn't going to work," King Fluharty scoffed. He stood up abruptly. "I want to know what happened and why it happened!"

"Andy," the Queen said worriedly, trying to calm him down. "Maybe we aren't supposed to know the answers."

"Why? So this can continue to go on?" the King shook his head fiercely. "Never mind. I'm going to go to sleep. You can keep trying to get this supernatural Force thing to give you answers. Personally, I wouldn't waste my time."

The King started to leave; the Queen following after him quickly. Roth felt just as frustrated as they did. He'd just had years of training in the Temple to keep his face and attitude placid. He still had a restraining arm on Beula. Her eyes were closed, and he could feel the Force gathering around her. He was just about ready to scream, to let all of the tension out.

The scrape of a chair turned everyone's head to the computer Fluharty had been on. Lorcan was sitting down slowly. He didn't acknowledge anyone as he began to type. Roth held his breath as he watched the screen. Slowly, shakily, Lorcan typed one name into the little search box.

"Palpatine," Beula said breathlessly from beside Roth. "Palpatine."

The King and Queen softly padded their feet to the edge of the computer. The wait went on again. The silence still and growing. But this time there was a difference. After only a few minutes, the screen filled up with information, filled up with files. Beula and Roth exchanged a flabbergasted look, unable to even begin to comprehend what was obviously in front of them.

"There have been Palpatines on Lark for hundreds of years," Lorcan's voice, soft and rough at the same time, interrupted the silence. "Farmers, it looks like."

"Look for any disappearances," Beula said quickly, leaning over the back of his chair to get a closer look. "Anything about forty or fifty years ago."

Lorcan's voice began to waver. "Fifty three years ago, the young wife of a Palpatine and their son vanished from the face of the planet."

"Force," Roth breathed. "This is it. The day that they disappeared, look at the flights, if you can."

"Why?" Lorcan asked.

"I want to see if there were any going to Naboo that day," Roth said. "Palpatine's supposed home planet is Naboo. Of course though . . . Palpatine isn't a common Nubian name, is it?"

"But he became famous," Beula pointed out. "For Force's sake, he's the Chancellor of the Senate! Wouldn't any of these Palpatines put two and two together?"

"Even if they did, they wouldn't have enough money to do something about it," Lorcan said. "They're not the richest people in the world. And, yes, there was a flight to Naboo."

"I want more information on the young wife. She had to have money, right? To afford a trip to Naboo," Roth rationalized.

Lorcan began working again; a second later he had a few more data files up on the screen. "As a matter of fact, she came from a well-to-do family. Only her sister was alive at the time that she left."

"Is her sister still alive now?" Roth demanded.

"Yes. She lives far away though. Practically the other side of the planet."

"Then we'd better leave as soon as possible."

"Not with that plague," the Queen said worriedly. "I already have all of Lark's deaths on my conscience. I can't add you two."

"We're Jedi, Your Majesty. I think we can make it okay," Roth said. "Lorcan, is there anything else we need to know about this?"

"I'll download all of this for you," Lorcan promised.

"You do that. Beula and I are going back to our room to comm Obi-Wan. You guys had better be ready in about ten minutes. If we leave now, we can get there by tomorrow afternoon."

"And we're taking our ship too," Beula added with authority. "Don't bring any of your bodyguards though. There's no need, and we don't have enough room."

Beula and Roth left the still-dumbfounded Larkians in the room.

Back in their room, Roth immediately turned on the comm to dial Obi-Wan's frequency. Luckily they hadn't unpacked yet, expecting to leave the next day. After a few minutes, Roth realized that nobody was home.

"Do you think he's over at Sabé's?" Beula asked, the name sounding vicious in her mouth.

Roth shook his head. "No. It would have woken up Anakin." He sighed. "Where do you think they are?"

"Maybe they went out to eat," Beula suggested.

"At this time of night?"

"I don't know then."

"I only have one thing to say." Roth turned around to look at Beula. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

* * * * *

AN: Sorry that this update took months. I finished this a long time back, but I lost the floppy disk. I found out my friend had a copy of it, so here it is! There are two other chapters after this, maybe three. I'm going to have them all up within the next week. Then I'll work on finishing the whole Chained to You series. The next one will also have a lot of Ani/Pad in it, so you Padani fans look for some fun.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Roth's bad feeling only increased as they flew their ship to Ruikaia, the town where Radella Olika resided. The ship seemed much smaller with six people traveling in it, but everybody was too tense to complain. The air seemed to cackle with electricity. Lorcan's face had softened considerably since Roth and Beula first met him. They knew he was praying that this would work out, that he would do justice to the oath he made to himself. Palpatine *would* be exposed.

Roth read the downloaded information Lorcan gave him. His eyes were straining after a few hours, but he wouldn't allow himself to quit. He needed to piece everything together. He was grabbing at loose straws though. It seemed logical to assume it was Palpatine who might be involved with the Sith, but at the same time Roth couldn't accept this. Obi-Wan and Anakin only talked highly of the Senator, and he had done so much good for the Republic. How could he be two-sided? Nothing made sense anymore.

Beula entertained herself by trying to get a hold of Obi-Wan or Anakin. She even tried Sabé's place a few times. She grew more depressed each time her comm calls were to no use. She worried that something had happened to them. They had reached the core of it all, of everything they were supposed to find out, but they were at their most dangerous point. One wrong decision could be fatal to them all.

Yrrk took to pacing. She attempted to talk to Lorcan a few times, but it was in vain. He was focused on willing everything to work out. She was full of nervous energy, and she wasn't the type to hide it. However, her sighs and offhand comments made no difference to Lorcan.

The King directed the ship for them. He knew where they were going, even without the help of the computer. The Queen stood behind him with a watchful eye. She was sharp and alert. More than Roth had expected her to be because of her model-perfect looks.

Because of how fast they set out, or, perhaps, because of Lorcan's pleas, they arrived in Ruikaia two hours ahead of the time they set. It was mid-morning, and the sun gleamed brightly in the tainted skies.

Beula and Roth were off first. Roth had memorized directions to Radella's house. He didn't want to bother with the man in charge of the port they'd landed in, so he used the Force. The man quickly understood that he had no problems in their using his port.

"Do you do that often?" Yrrk asked nervously as they all set out in a huddled group.

"Only when I have to," Roth replied. He was about to go into more about the Jedi customs, but his eyes were met with a heinous sight. Two children were on the street attempting to play some local game or other. Their movements were slow, and their skin was covered in boils. Roth quickly averted his eyes.

The Queen made a painful noise in her throat. "It's horrible," she whispered. "But imagine knowing that you tried to save them but couldn't."

Roth didn't want to imagine. He could guess that the guilt was pretty destructive. The group stayed silent. They ignored the blatant looks the town people were giving them. Not only were they boil-free, but they were all drabbed in fancy attire. It wasn't something that happened often to the quiet town of Raikaia.

"We're here," Roth said at last. It hadn't been more than a few minutes, but to him it felt like an eternity. He knocked roughly on the door as everyone stood behind him. He held his breath as he waited for someone to open the door.

Eventually, the door was opened. An elderly woman greeted them suspiciously. Her skin was free of boils, but the way she held herself, and the hacking coughs told Roth that she would soon have many of them. Soon she would be dead. The thought made him want to be sick. He was taking to a bunch of people who would be dead soon. Walking corpses.

"May we come in, Mistress Olika?" Obi-Wan asked in his most polite manner. "We have to speak to you in private as soon as possible."

"About what?" Radella asked sharply.

"About Dymphia, your sister."

Radella's eyes widened. She stepped back to allow the six adults into her house. She looked like she didn't know whether to be terrified or joy-filled. When the door was shut, she showed them into her living room. The house that she lived in was spacious. The result of her inheritance, Roth suspected. Once everyone was settled, Radella spoke. "What about Dymphia?" she asked softly, trying to remain calm and neutral.

"We want to know what took place fifty three years ago," Beula said bluntly.

Radella looked even more shocked than before. A fit of coughing over took her. The raspy sound her lungs made had everyone wincing. "Fifty three years ago?" she asked after she had calmed down.

"We know that Dantius Palpatine is your nephew," Obi-Wan said. "Don't hold anything back because you think you're protecting him."

"Dymphia died years ago," Radella said, seeming as if she hadn't heard him. "She died before she could see Dantius become as powerful as he is today."

"You follow him closely, then?" King Fluharty looked surprised.

"Of course," Radella replied. "He is my only living relative. Dymphia and I kept in touch after she left. Our letters were scarce, but they were letters all the same. It was many years before we felt we could use the comm unit."

"Why was that?" Obi-Wan wanted to know.

"Why, because of Thorpe," Radella said as though this was obvious. She sighed. "He was obsessed with finding Dymphia and Dantius. Spent the rest of his life trying to find them."

"Didn't he notice when Palpatine became Chancellor?" Beula asked.

"He was dead by then," Radella said simply. "He never did find them."

"Why didn't you tell him?" Yrrk burst out. "You knew where they were, and you pretended not to. Why?"

"Because Dymphia asked me to," Radella answered. "She had to leave the planet if she wanted Dantius to survive."

"We're getting confused," the Queen said politely. "Could you start from the beginning?"

Radella nodded. "The beginning . . ."

* * * * *

Obi-Wan, Sabé, and Anakin arrived on Lark a few hours after Roth and Beula left. They weren't aware of it at the time though. It was easy enough to get to the castle. Especially when someone was determined as Obi-Wan.

It was at the front gates that they had trouble.

"We're here to see two Jedi who came here this morning," Obi-Wan said matter-of-factly. "We need to speak to them immediately. It's urgent."

The guard raised his eyebrows. "Are you the backup they promised?" he eyed Anakin and Sabé. "Don't look like much to me," he determined.

"That's Anakin Skywalker, and I'm Obi-Wan Kenobi, if those names mean anything to me," Obi-Wan said coolly. He didn't like using his fame most of the time, but in moments of intimidation it was useful.

The guard looked surprised. "Are you now?"

Sabé pushed past Obi-Wan. "Just let us in. We need to speak to them. Unless you overthrew them." Her eyes flashed, informing him that she didn't like that possibility.

The guard got the message loud and clear. "I'd like to help you, miss, but even if I let you in you wouldn't find them."

"Where are they?" Obi-Wan demanded.

"They left."

"Already?"

"All of them. Your two Jedi friends, Clemens Lorcan, Gemina Yrrk, and the King and Queen. Wouldn't accept any guards either. The Jedi were very firm about this." The guard scratched his head. "A little stupid, in my opinion. Especially after that mean-looking man who just came by asking about them."

Obi-Wan felt his heart skip a beat. "What are you talking about?"

"I don't rightly know. A man came by a little before you all. He was asking after them too. Said Chancellor Palpatine sent him."

"Zoilo," Sabé whispered. "He was here. I know."

Obi-Wan felt like everything was in slow motion. The danger that was lurking in the air finally caught his attention. "Where did they go?" he asked the guard, putting force and threats in his voice.

The guard took a step backwards. "A town several hours away by flight. Raikaia, I think. The man who was here came in to look at the library for a little bit. Seems they left a few documents up that told him where they were going."

"Sith," Obi-Wan cursed. He swept around, his Jedi robes flying with the wind, and marched back to his speeder. Anakin and Sabé were quick to follow. Normally Obi-Wan kept his anger under control. Normally he was a pretty pleasant person most of the time. These were not normal circumstances.

Nobody spoke until they were back in the ship. Obi-Wan typed in the name of the city the guard had given him. A few seconds later directions popped up on screen. He pushed the autopilot button and turned around. "Zoilo is going to do something."

Neither Sabé nor Anakin disagreed. There was a moment of silent waiting. They couldn't do anything yet, they couldn't stop what might happen when they were in the air. It was possible they might even be too late.

"We're all strong in the Force," Obi-Wan said suddenly, proving that he had been trying to come up with a way to turn the cards in their favor. "We need to meditate. Focus all of your energy on this ship. It's imperative that we get to this place before Zoilo does."

* * * * *

". . . Dymphia fell in love with Thorpe with good reason. He was a handsome man, and he was quite the charmer. But he only had eyes for our Dymphia. Father and Mother about had a bantha over it. Thorpe was a farmer from a lowly family, and we were quite well off. They had dreams of marrying Dymphia to someone who would increase their riches. Of course Dymphia didn't listen to them. She was always sneaking out with Thorpe in the middle of the night. I was the only one who knew about it."

Radella paused for a moment, remembering. "Then it happened. She found out that she was with child. Father and Mother were furious! But there was only one way to deal with it. They reluctantly let Thorpe and Dymphia marry. The two were the happiest couple I'd ever seen. Dymphia wasn't suited for the farmer's wife lifestyle though. She loved Thorpe, but she missed living in luxury and society."

"Is that why she left?" Beula asked.

"Hush, child," Radella said softly, putting a finger to her lips. "No, that wasn't why she left. She droned in in that world for the length of her pregnancy. When it was time for her to labor, though, she came back home. We talked a lot those nights. Thorpe was still back on the farm. He was ready to come to the local hospital if the child was to be born." She smiled at Beula. "That's when she started to plan her leaving."

"She told me it one night after Dantius was born. They had checked the baby's midichlorian count, and he had tested positive. Neither of us understood much about it, but we knew that Dantius would be taken from Dymphia. She argued with Thorpe that night. She yelled and yelled, accusing him of doing this to her on purpose. He had no idea that the Jedi gene was in his family."

"Well, Thorpe left that night. He was angry, and he went to the drinks to revive himself. That's when Dymphia started planning. She told me in secrecy that she wanted to keep Dantius, that she would do anything to be able to keep him. We decided that she needed to get off planet. There were many planets where they didn't even check for midichlorians! And there was one in particular. The flight would leave the next day."

"Naboo," Yrrk whispered.

"Yes, Naboo," Radella answered. "They left the next day, and Dymphia resettled with her child. Father and Mother had both taken ill, or they would have protested her leaving. They died before they could see their first grandchild. And Thorpe, he went crazy. I knew how much they loved each other, and I was almost tempted to tell him where she was. But I didn't. I loved my sister more than anything. I love Danty just as much. I'll do anything to keep them safe."

"Do you speak often with your nephew?" Roth asked suspiciously.

Radella nodded slowly. "Yes and no. I gave him his share of the family fortune. That's how he set himself up and became a Senator in the first place. Since then, he's taken care to send me regular money."

"Does he know about the plague? Do you know that he set it on the planet?" Yrrk blurted out.

Radella's eyes were closed off. "He knows of the plague. I do not wish to leave the planet though. He has offered devices with which I can hold the plague off. They have worked thus far."

A sudden thought struck Roth. "Do you know, Mistress Olika . . . did your nephew have any children?"

Radella looked contemplative. "I believe he isn't married," she said uncomfortably. "However, he has had suspicions . . ."

"What do you mean by that?" Roth pressed, even though he already suspected the answer.

"There is a girl that he has met recently. He is strong with the Jedi's Force. You two have it, you should know. He thinks that this girl might be the result of an affair he had many years ago."

"Sabé . . ." Roth whispered to himself.

"Why are you tell us all this?" Lorcan asked. "If you claim to love your nephew so much, and you want to protect him, why are you telling us all of this?"

"Because I asked her to."

All seven occupants turned around slowly. What met their eyes was enough to strike panic in even the Jedi's hearts. Zoilo was standing in the doorway. Instead of the usual blank expression, his face had a malicious smile on it. In his hand he held a blaster. Roth had a feeling that it wasn't set to paralyze.

* * * * *

Obi-Wan's plan worked well, but if it was well enough he didn't know yet. They passed across the planet of Lark in only three hours. From calculations, it would have taken about three times that amount to get there under normal circumstances.

Sabé and Anakin stayed in the hull with Obi-Wan. They kept quiet for most of the first hour, but then Anakin began to get restless.

"Do you think Zoilo is going to kill them?" Anakin inquired in his usual boyish voice.

Obi-Wan glanced at him while keeping his Force powers on the ship. "We don't know."

"But we suspect," Anakin said. "Do you think he's going to kill Roth and Beula?"

Obi-Wan's gaze darkened as he looked away from Anakin. "We can't know yet."

Sabé, who had kept quiet up until now, put a hand on Obi-Wan's. He met her eyes, and they shared a smile. Sabé squeezed Obi-Wan's hand, and he felt a little better.

"Why would Zoilo want to do all of this stuff?" Anakin asked, ignoring the moment his Master and friend had just shared. "A guy's got to have a motive."

"Not necessarily. Maybe he just snapped," Obi-Wan said weakly.

"Everything's going to come together in the end," Sabé said confidently. "We'll find out why Zoilo's doing this, and Roth and Beula can fill us in on the information they've found. It must be important if they left with no guards."

"Unless Lorcan overthrew them and Zoilo is, in fact, trying to save them," Obi-Wan speculated. Nobody commented on that. They all knew that that wasn't they way things had gone.

"How much longer do we have?" Anakin asked after a moment of silence befell them.

"It's hard to tell, but we're not that far from the actual town they're going to," Obi-Wan replied. "Focus on moving this ship. Especially you, Anakin. You have more power than Sabé and I combined."

Anakin smiled smugly at the praise and closed his eyes again. He didn't say anything for the rest of the time they were in the ship. None of them did. They all felt the grim, hazy lines of danger, and they all dealt with it internally.

* * * * *

"Why would you tell her to explain everything to us?" Gem asked haughtily, hands on her hips suspiciously. "Maybe you're as stupid as you look."

Zoilo's blaster spun to her. Clem stepped in between the weapon and Gem. His eyes were cold and hard as he settled them on Zoilo.

Roth saw the opportunity. Zoilo was focused on Gem and Clem. He and Beula exchanged a silent look. Then Roth lunged forward at Zoilo.

A hand wrapped around his wrist, yanking him backwards. He felt the stiff poking of a blaster in his back. "Don't even think about it."

"Olika," Beula whispered. Her eyes were wide when they met Roth's. He felt suddenly hopeless. He didn't know how they were going to get out of this one.

"To answer your question, Yrrk," Zoilo said carefully, keeping a steady aim. "Radella's actions were simply to stall you until I could arrive. I felt safe having you know everything because I don't plan on letting any of you out of here alive."

"Wow, Zoilo," Roth bit out, "you sound like you have an awful lot of self-respect. I'll bet it was all in large part to you, huh? No Palpatine telling you exactly what he wanted?"

Zoilo didn't even look at Roth. "Sagiv, your petty attempts at distraction are useless. Whatever you might have thought of me is about to change." He pulled the trigger. Clem dropped to the ground, and Gem let out a piercing scream.

* * * * *

Obi-Wan, Sabé, and Anakin had finally landed. They jumped off of the dock they'd settled their ship in and got onto the main street. All of them looked around themselves.

"Where do we go?" Sabé whispered. "Do either of you sense them?"

Obi-Wan closed his eyes. "I sense . . . fear."

"Which direction?"

Anakin stiffened suddenly, his eyes closing.

"What do you sense, Ani?" Obi-Wan asked softly.

"Beula," Anakin choked out. With that, he ripped off down the street. Obi-Wan and Sabé had no choice but to follow them.

Their run wasn't far. Anakin had his light saber in his hand. He sliced the door of a house open with it, too impatient for door knobs. Passerby were beginning to stare at them, shocked at what was unfolding in front of them.

Anakin leaped into the house, Obi-Wan and Sabé not far behind them. They heard a scream in the air, and they ran to the sound.

Everything seemed to happen quickly. Their eyes met the sight of Roth in the clutches of an elderly woman. Two figures who looked like Royalty were standing off to the side, eyes wide with fear. Two crumpled bodies were on the ground.

"Beula," Anakin whispered again, knowing that the small one next to Zoilo was his friend.

Gemina Yrrk lunged at Zoilo, deathly eyes attached to him, hands outstretched as if to claw.

Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Sabé joined the struggle without a moment's notice. Zoilo hit Gem with his blaster before Obi-Wan could get to him. Sabé knelt down by Beula, quickly feeling the small girl's body for any sign of life. One more blaster shot could be heard. Sabé couldn't feel a pulse. Beula's eyes were glassy, but filled with fierce determination. Death seemed to capture her last emotion.

Sabé began to shake. She looked up again. Roth had managed to get free of the elderly woman with Anakin's help. He was standing in front of Zoilo's body with Obi-Wan. Both of them had grim looks on their faces. Everything seemed to be over. Anakin had taken the blaster away from the woman, and he had his light saber to her neck. Apparently he seemed to sense that her death was unnecessary.

Roth looked down to were Sabé knelt. His mouth opened as if in shock. He dropped to the floor by Beula's body. "Beula," he said softly, putting her small hands in his own. His face was that of anguished torture.

Sabé watched as if in slow motion. Anakin had gone slack in holding the woman, full of grief. She'd sensed this and managed to get an upper hand. She had his light saber in her hand in an instant. Before anyone could react, she swung it with deadly accuracy across Roth's neck.

Blood splattered on Sabé. She screamed and jumped up, unable to take her eyes off of Roth's decapitated body. "Oh, my Force," she whimpered. Those words were released from her lips as if in a chant.

Obi-Wan's light saber had connected with the woman, but he wasn't fast enough. The woman fell to the ground, and he looked at the ground in pain.

"Are they all dead?" Anakin whispered after a moment. His cheeks were covered in tears.

There was quiet weeping in the corner. The Queen had the King's lifeless body in her lap, and she was rocking him back and forth, crying so hard she was unable to speak.

Obi-Wan began crying himself. As if his legs had gone out suddenly, he fell to the ground and buried his face in his hands.


End file.
